Game Over
by Kawabunga
Summary: No, this was definitely Hell. What had he done to suffer this gruesom fate? Been Kira, perhaps? LightxL
1. Chapter 1

**Warnings:** I don't really know yet. Spoilers I guess. LightxL later on!!

**Disclaimer:** Death Note is not mine. And that's good, seeing as if I owned it, the whole plot would really have sucked.

**A/N:** Oh-kay!! Here I am with my FIRST chaptered Death Note fanfic! I am really, really anxious about this one, and it's probably a bad idea and all, but this plot just won't get out of my head. Please keep in mind that I am not from an English speaking country and that this might mean that you'll find misspellings and grammatical errors in here. Also, I hope that you will tell me what I can do to improve my writing.

First of all; I chose this plot because I think the original story is wonderful and I wanted to keep it intact. You must excuse me if you find my language poor and if you do, PLEASE tell me.

Anyway; I want to dedicate this story to two of my earlier reviewers;

**mornir-brightflame** and **Kiki Lelsissia**

AND to** Lifes.Lover**, a dear friend here on FF net

You all are amazing and you have provided me with so much help and motivation. Thank you!

Now, all of you; PLEASE ENJOY!

Love,  
Naro.

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter One_

_"Possibly Hell"_

-

Think.

Breathe.

Move—

_Wait what?!_

His eyes fluttered open, but he closed them rapidly, as an intense, white light seemed to rip his corneas to shreds. As the pain slowly ebbed away, he inhaled deeply once again and his breath hitched at the feeling of air filling his lungs.

_He could breathe! _

Laying completely still for what seemed like minutes, he carefully tried to move his hand and felt how it grasped the ground beneath him. _Ground!_ He continued to move his digits and all of a sudden he realized that his fingers were fiddling with something akin to grass!

How could that even be possible? He was dead! He had to be!

He could remember it clearly. All if it!

How Near and the SPK had watched him crawling like pathetic fool on the floor, stained with his own blood, after Matsuda that traitorous jerk had shot him! How he had tried to write the damn brat's name down on a piece of paper from the Death Note and how Ryuk had disagreed to help him. Betrayed him even.

He remembered the taste of chopper in his mouth, the insufferable pain from his wounds, the moldy smell from the wooden, dusty floor.

He had been scared.

Awfully scared and completely alone.

Not even Mikami had been able to help him out. The idiot had stabbed himself the moment he realized Kira was caught and there was no way out.

He recalled the way his heart had clenched in his chest and how he had struggled enormously not to let tears fill his eyes. It had hurt so badly, more than anything he had ever felt. It had been a heart attack, no doubt. A heart attack caused by the Shinigami writing his name in the note.

He was supposed to be dead! Why was he here now? And where was 'here' anyway?

Now he did not care about the scolding light, or the pain it evoked. Forcing his eyes open, Light Yagami was faced with the most shocking sight he had ever experienced.

He was surrounded by tall, majestic mountains, rising towards a deep blue sky. Mountains more massive than he had seen in his entire life. High peeks covered with glimmering, white snow. Below them, crawling up the steep hills, were luxuriant forests that ended in wide, deserted plains of emerald grass. A river slithered across the beautiful panorama, dividing the forest in two halves and not a building, or any other sign of technology for that matter, was in sight. Birds could be heard from the depths of the amazing, green forest and he caught sight of an eagle in between the cotton clouds.

The landscape lay bathed in strong sunlight and a swift wind played in the treetops.  
The beauty surrounding him on all sides stole his breath away and he could only stare.

This had to be the fairest place on earth.

_No_, he reminded himself, _this could not be a place on earth, now could it?_

He was dead, and therefore he could not still be on earth, at least not in the human realm. Nor could it be the Shinigami realm. Ryuk, the bastard, had described it as gray, scary and boring. This definitely wasn't any of those things. It could very easily be associated with Heaven, but considering the rules of the note, he could not end up there. No, this place was something else. Muu maybe? It seemed like the most plausible option just then.

But how could_ this _be nothingness?

"The probabilities of this being Hell just went up by a hundred percent."

Light's heart froze and had he been surprised before, it could not even compare to the shock he felt now.

That voice.

That smooth, yet monotone emphasis, companied by a somewhat foreign accent. An accent he now knew had to be English.

He had heard it a million times before it seemed, just not recently. In fact, it had been several years since his ears had been presented with it. Six years to be exact.

That voice.

It was so familiar, yet so far away. Like a dream. He remembered it perfectly, but it was out of this world none the less.

He felt how goosebumps appeared on his skin and how every tiny hair on his back stood straight. It was almost as if being faced with a ghost. No wait, this _was_ indeed a ghost. It had to be!

_L was dead._

He turned sharply, an almost desperate prayer echoing from the depths of his soul.

_This can't be!_

_It's impossible!_

He was greatly disappointed.

In front of him, only five feet away, barefoot and hunched over like always, stood none other than the detective himself.

Chocolate eyes widened to the point where it became surreal.

Nothing about him had changed really. He looked completely the same way as he had done all those years ago. Suddenly, by the sight of the man, Light remembered everything about L with a frightening clarity. His big, soulless eyes, his unruly hair, the sloppy clothes.

He remembered the way the detective always used to wake him up in the middle of the night for a snack. How he accused him for being Kira every possible chance he got. How he sat, how he spoke, how his pupils narrowed when he was surprised.

Everything!

And now, the same man that Light remembered all these things about was standing straight before him, hands in his pockets, toes tangled in the grass and carrying a rather gloomy expression. The dark bags beneath his eyes had not shrunk and he appeared just as spidery and frail as he had done the last time Light had seen him.

Dead. Rem had killed him, thinking that she protected Misa by doing so. Rem had murdered L!

Light had seen his fucking corpse!

He had held him that day. Held his body as it went rigid. When the light he never knew existed until then, left his dark-rimmed eyes.

L was fucking dead!

"_You!"_ The auburn haired genius hissed between gritted teeth as anger flared up inside of him all of a sudden. A familiar feeling of hatred made his heart speed up and the blood started throbbing heavily in his ears.

L quirked an eyebrow and Light felt as if someone stabbed him with a knife and twisted around in his gut. The gesture was so delicate, so clean and for some reason it annoyed him to no end. He wanted to wipe that look off of the raven haired man's face, preferably with a damn good kick.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" He spat vehemently, feeling how a wave of fury washed through him.

The panda-eyed detective's lip quivered and for a split second, Light thought he saw something akin to aggression building up in his coal colored eyes. However, the look soon vanished and his features went plain again. Sleek and pale, like an iceberg.

"I could ask you the same thing Yagami-kun." He stated calmly, although Light knew perfectly well he had to feel all but calm. "However, I will not, seeing as nor I know where this place is, or how I got here. But," he continued to stare at Light, "I assume it's safe to say that you are dead. Or else you wouldn't be here."

"Of course I'm bloody dead you son of a bitch!" He barked.

L merely blinked and Light was peeved beyond boundaries. He really could not stand the man and the thought of spending his afterlife with said man made his insides curl. He felt like throwing up.

"This is my afterlife L!" His right arm shot out and he gestured towards the surroundings. The thought of this obscure creature (read L) soiling his perfect place was unbearable. "Now get lost!"

"Oh, believe me Yagami-kun," the insomniac answered with a hint of sarcasm staining his cool voice, "I would if I could." His eyes darted to meet Light's. "I don't want to be around you any more than you want to be around me. Besides, you are the one to blame for all of this anyway, _friend_."

Light almost laughed. "Still mad about that Ryuzaki?" His voice hardened again, "getting killed was your own damn fault! It wasn't even me anyway. It was Rem."

A snort. "Really? I'm so sorry Yagami-kun. My mistake. And to think that all this time I thought it was you who wanted me buried."

Light felt his eye twitch.

_Sarcasm._

"You're just mad because I won." He hissed. "I fucking won L!"

_Light - one. L – zero._

Somewhere above them, the eagle Light had seen earlier gave a guttural, predatory screech.

"Won?" L blinked. "You really think dying is winning?" His thumb, oh God how typical, was raised to his mouth and he started nibbling on it. Light felt like cutting it straight off.

"Well," the detective mused, "I guess that means I won, seeing as I died first."

Light wanted to pull his hair out. "Gah! You're such a damned pain in the ass Ryuzaki! I hate you!" He threw his arms in the air and just stood there panting. This was definitely the worst thing that could have happened. Not only was he fucking dead, he was being _haunted_ by L!

"Out of curiosity," L had obviously decided to ignore his little outburst, "may I ask who finally brought you down?" There was mocking in his usual emotionless tone and Light was overcome with the urge to place his fist in that hated, pale face.

Sneering at the detective, he gave him the finger instead.

"None of your damned business L."

Dark eyes flashed threateningly his way and Light's glare shot daggers in return. There was absolutely no way he was going to tell the bastard who had killed him and that Near, his own damn successor had been the one causing his fall.

"Oh," the insomniac breathed, "but I believe it is..." He continued to penetrate Light with that all-knowing gaze of his. "Was it Near? Mello? Or possibly even your own fat—"

"Shut up!"

L actually looked pleased. Like a cat cornering it's pray. "I struck a nerve didn't I?"

"Fuck you!"

The detective made a face. "Fuck you? I'd rather not." He ignored the other's enraged spluttering. "So, who was it?" Clearly, the man was not going to let him out of this one.

Well, in that case, Light was gonna give him what he wanted.

"For your information," the hazel-eyed man started with a faint smirk and grinned inwardly when he noticed a look of vague concern grazing the cake-killer's features. Oh, he was most certainly going to get the truth now!

"Mello, or should I say Mihael Keehl," L's eyes snapped open, "could have done no such thing as killing me, seeing as he is _dead_."

For a moment, Light wanted to throw his head back and laugh upon seeing L's shocked expression. His mouth had fallen open and he was gaping like there was no tomorrow. The detective did nothing to hide it and the reaction quite truthfully cheered him up. This felt good.

"Yes, L. Mello is dead. Unfortunately, he passed away just after I—"

"So it was Near then."

The sudden and unexpected calmness of L's voice startled him and when he looked up, Light was only a blink away from gaping. The spidery man appeared to be in total control of his actions again and there wasn't even a hint of emotion in his eyes.

His words still echoed in the brunet's ears.

_Near._

That detestable brat, he thought, was probably the one person he hated more than Ryuuzaki.

A quick glance at the detective, however, made him rethink his statement.

L's face was, despite the inner turmoil he must be feeling, a blank page and Light's previous revelations no longer seemed to have the slightest effect on him. To hell with him and his constant self-control!

At that point, Light decided that Near came a close second to the insomniac regarding who was his nemesis. Growling deep in his throat the auburn haired male turned away from the infuriating sight of the detective. He wasn't even able to face the man!

"There's no use in denying it Yagami-kun. You are an almost flawless liar, but your silence speaks for itself. Near caught you and we both know it."

Light was about to whirl around and yell at the man, but refrained from doing so the last second. Instead, he turned around slowly, and while he stooped his head faintly, he permitted a cruel smile to form on his lips.

"Very well then," he nearly whispered and flicked some of his hair out of his eyes in a swift motion, "I will not deny it."

L seemed a but surprised, and Light could see the suspicion flickering in those large, gloomy orbs. He sniggered inwardly.

"You are right L. Near figured out I was Kira. Sure, it took him a quite the amount of years to do so, but he managed to solve the puzzle in the end."

L said nothing, so Light simply continued. "However, you should know that before I so tragically passed away—"

The detective gave a small snort, interrupting him in his speech, making Light grimace in irritation.

"As I was saying, Ryuuzaki, when you so rudely interrupted me; Before I was caught and _executed_, the inhabitants of the world were starting to praise Kira." He almost sniggered at the look L sent him. "They started appreciating his abilities to see righteous judgment and even the president of The United States gave Kira permission to carry out his work."

"—You mean _your_ work", the detective snapped, face now flushed with anger.

Light did not bother to answer. "The Kira followers grew large in numbers and people realized that someone was watching out for them. They were approving of the New God and his Justice, _L_."

L's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Justice you say?"

Light felt his anger rise at the tone the detective used. Ryuzaki had never cared about masking his words unless he wanted to himself. Now he was evidently mad and quite frankly Light found it slightly captivating to watch. Yet, the insomniac's twisted sense of justice pissed him off and he was once again overcome by the rage he had been feeling towards the detective when he was still alive. The damn sugarmaniac managed to irritate him even in death!

Scowling, he stepped closer to the hunched figure.

"Yes. Justice L!" He paused to draw his breath. "I am Justice!"

He knew the detective did not approve of his Perfect World, but he still felt like he should let the man know that he had yet to give up on it. Even if things seemed pretty dark at the moment.

L's lips actually tugged upwards and for a brief moment, the ghost of a smirk grazed his pale features. The sight only infuriated Light more. How the hell could he be smirking now?

"Of course Yagami-kun. You still believe that don't you?"

His tone was poisoning and his voice quivered faintly despite the way he held his face.

Typical L!

Always acting, never letting his guard down.

The black eyed man paused a little and Light could literally picture how he struggled to hold his calm demeanor. The thought of L being upset made him feel a tad better and noting how his pulse slowed down, he huffed before turning away from the raven haired man.

"Like you said yourself, of course I do." He gave a nonchalant shrug.

"Besides, you're one to talk about screwed justice."

Onyx eyes burned into his back and Light smirked. He had achieved his goal. L was angry now and nothing made the auburn haired male happier than the fact that he had managed to evoke such a strong feeling as anger within the detective.

He really hated L. Hated everything about him.

The way he stood, like an old man, crooked and frail. His disgusting eating habits, his bare feet, the way his jumper hung loosely around his bony shoulders. The way he would talk in that monotone, highly annoying fashion of his. Everything!

The man was a nuisance! Ruyk most certainly had been wrong when he said Raito would not go Heaven nor Hell. This had to be Hell dammit! Why else would L, his worst enemy, be around?! On the other hand, why would L be in Hell?

Arhg! He did not even care! The case was quite simple, L was _here_, Light detested him and had to get rid of the man as soon as possible.

He should probably be a little more careful with his words though. He perfectly remembered L's kicks and the fact that despite his seemingly fragile built, he was rather strong. However, he was to fed up with the bastard to care right now. All he really wanted was to hurt L and he was most definitely going to to his best to achieve his goal.

He tilted his head sideways for a moment and rolled his neck, pretending to be bored.

"You're one to talk L. Really, come on!" He trapped the other's gaze. "You have no right to point out my flaws. Look at yourself. When you were still alive and working on the Kira-case, you went by all means to get what you wanted. You locked Misa up for days, until she was on the verge of break down. You—"

"Misa Amane was under suspicion of being the Second Kira! You know that awfully well Yagami-kun!"

Light gave a shrug. "That still doesn't make your methods fair, now does it?" He watched how the detective's eyes turned a deeper shade of black. The predatory gleam he saw hidden withing their depths only encouraged him to go on.

The bastard was going to get it all.

"Drop it." A gust of wind played with his auburn locks, making them dance before his eyes.

"Let's face it Ryuuzaki. You're nothing but a slave to your own, fucked up conscience. You believe you know the difference between right and wrong at that it has fallen upon you to deliver punishment to those who doesn't follow your rules." He paused, leaving the sentence hanging. Surely L would catch up with him. "What makes you any different than Kira?"

_Wham!_

He was knocked off his feet and before he knew it, he was laying face down on the ground. Groaning in pain -who knew the afterlife could _hurt_?-, he rolled over and found a furious L standing over him.

"Don't ever compare me to yourself again Yagami-kun. Unless you want to suffer for the rest of eternity!" Light was tempted to shoot back, but something in the detective eyes made him close his mouth. L was not only mad, his eyes were blazing. Light had never seen that colorless face so darkened and even though he would never admit it, let alone say it out loud, the look in the insomniac's eyes gave him the creeps.

"You are a ruthless killer! A man—no a child, spreading out your deceased message to every corner of the world, creating fear and hate among men! How dare you even think that you and I have something in common?" His voice cracked and Light felt his eyes widen despite himself, "if not for you, hundred, no _thousands_ of people would still be alive and well!"

The ebony haired detective inhaled shakily and his whole body trembled with utter rage. "You used all the people that trusted you and you never once looked back at your own crimes! All you could think of was power! What about Misa Light- kun? You never really loved her, did you? You used her!"

Light's brows furrowed at the mention of his previous girlfriend.

The detective was beyond coherency now and seemingly on instinct, he reached down and grabbed the front of Light's shirt.

Yanking him upwards, so that their faces were only inches apart, L seized the brunet's eyes with his own.

"You used her, just like you did to everyone else!" Despite his obvious exacerbation, he let out an exasperated sigh and some of the steel in his voice dissapeared. "It's almost like you weren't even human. You held no emotions, nothing at all!"

His words came out like whispers. "I called you my friend."

Light wanted to shoot back, but for some reason, he found no fitting reply. He just continued to stare into L's eyes. For a moment, he thought they seemed somewhat soft, but the next, they burned with a scolding passion.

"You are nothing but a juvenile smart-ass, wanting to rule the world Light-kun!" For some weird reason, Light cringed a little when L used his name like that, "You don't even know the meaning of justice! You are a coward!" He drew his breath,

"_Kira."_

That did it. Light snapped.

All the rage he had been building up over the past years, all the emotions he had locked away, suddenly hit him like a bullet to the chest and his mind went completely blank.

Without thinking, or even registering what he did, he leaped at the detective, hand clenched in a hard, unforgiving fist.

* * *

**A/N:** :Sweatdrop: I'm a bit scared. What do you think? :Bites nails nervously:

Oh, by the way! The place Light and L find themselves in has a purpose, please wait and you'll see!


	2. Chapter 2

**Warnings:** Cursing and spoilers!

**Disclaimer:** Not mine

**A/N:** So, things are tightening up... Quite litterally. Ha Ha. I am very pleased with the amount of reviews that I got and please don't be afraid of reviewing! Thank you for being supportive! And yes, the place they are in are going to reveal it's purpose. Until that happens, you're just gonna have to wait patiently! :Laughs:

I haven't got a beta on this one, but I hope that you will forgive me and point out my errors! The language can sometimes make it a little difficult!

Anyway, please enjoy reading!

* * *

**"Game Over"**

_Chapter Two_

_"Identity"_

_-_

The sound of bones cracking when they collided with the hardness of his fist made Light's blood run faster in his veins and the wave of adrenaline that rolled through him sent sparks flying in his mind. L's jaw made a 'popping' sound and Light watched in pleasure as those black eyes widened before squeezing shut. A groan tore it's way from the detective's throat and Light felt like laughing.  
His knuckles hurt, but it most certainly wasn't enough to stop him now.

It felt so damn good to pour all his anger into his actions and he loved the feeling of completely losing his mind.  
It reminded him vaguely of how he had felt when writing names down in his Death Note.

His vision was partly blurry and all he really registered was L's heavy breathing and the taste of steel in his mouth.

Not waiting for a reaction from L, the launched out again and this time he hit the insomniac straight in the gut. As L toppled over in pain, Light hurriedly withdrew a couple of inches, but found he was a millisecond too late.

He had seen it coming, but there was nothing he could do to prevent L's bare foot from slamming into his chest, sending him flying through the air before he hit the ground with a loud 'thud'. He remembered those kicks all to well.

Despite the pain it did not seem that L had hit any vital organs, and as soon as the sudden nausea disappeared, he was back in the game.

Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself up just fast enough to block a crushing blow from the older man. L's foot slammed against his arm and he was actually forced several feet backwards, his shoes digging into the earth, ripping loose strains of emerald grass. The pressure would have forced him to his knees, but he managed to act before such a thing could happen.

Grabbing a hold of the detective's foot, he twisted it around, causing the insomniac to whirl around and land on his back. If Light had been angry before, he most certainly was now and the heat that seemed to radiate from L's onyx eyed told him that he was not alone. His face had stiffened in a scowl and he looked as if he was about to rip someone's head off. His whole body trembled with rage and Light was a bit surprised to see that pale skin so reddened. The detective almost looked sunburned, a thought that despite his fury, made Light crack a somewhat maniacal smirk. He was going to redden that skin further more

It felt so fucking good!

No, he corrected himself, it felt heavenly! Being able to kick L's ass like this.

Well, quite frankly he wasn't sure who kicked who's ass, but in reality he did not give a shit. Just as long as he got the chance to empty his soul of some of the wrath he had been locking away for all these years.

"Give up L!" he yelled and planted his knee in the insomniac's stomach. "Just shut up and leave it be!" He threw a gasping L to the ground.

"You have no idea of what I had to go give up for the sake of a Perfect World!"

L, still on the ground, wiped his forehead, pushing away sticky, black hair.

"Oh really?" he hissed before getting up. Then, he leaped forward, his hands colliding with Light's torso, giving it a good shove, making Light stumble backwards.

"And what about the members of the Task Force?!" L shouted as Light gained his balance. "What about Ukita?! He _died_ because of Kira!"

"That was Misa, not me!"

L scowled at him. "You're blaming Amane now? She did nothing that you would not have done! What about Aizawa, Mogi and Ide?! What about Matsuda?"

Light growled when Matsuda's name was mentioned. If that pathetic excuse of a human being had not fired his gun at him in the warehouse, Near would have been dead now and Kira still alive! May he burn in Hell!

"What about you father?! Soichiro Yagami gave all he had! He put his own life in danger a dozen of times to serve justice and in the end his own son is Kira!"

"My father is dead!" For the first time in what seemed like ages, he had uttered words that came right from his heart. He had not spoken of his father's death to anyone, at least not without taking caution.

"He died because of Mello! That bastard caused it!"

L was fuming now. " Don't you dare blame Mello! He would not have been involved in this if you hadn't used that Death Note in the first place! Had you not killed me, Mello would still have been in Whammy's house and Near as well!"

A gust of wind grabbed L's shirt and lifted it forcefully, showing more of his pearly skin.

"Again, I did _not _kill you Ryuuzaki! Rem did!"

"Cut the crap Kira!" L spat before he attacked again.

Remembering Rem, his thoughts flickered to Ryuk and despite the anger that rose within him, he wondered where the Death God was now. Where had he gone off to after he'd killed Light? To the Shinigame realm? He doubted that.  
Ryuk always complained about how boring the other Shinigamis were and talked about how dull the existence was there.  
Perhaps he'd find other ways of humoring himself after Light passed away. Maybe he had already figured something out. Light had no clue about how time worked in this place, so for all he knew, Ryuk could be doing anything, anywhere. Perhaps he had decided that dropping the note on earth could only provide him with a short time of fin -at least seen from the perspective of one that could live through eternity- and that he was therefore more careful with his experiments now. Light was short of an answer to that and there were small chances that he would ever get one. He dropped the subject Ryuk and concentrated on what he was currently dealing with instead. An enraged insomniac with an intention to kill. Or at least cause a lot of damage.

L's strength was remarkable and Light was impressed against his will. Where had the detective learned to fight like this?

Surely, Watari had had some hidden cards up his sleeve, but L's battle skills truly were out of the ordinary. He fought with a kind of graze Light would never have considered him capable of and those kicks of his were deadly if preformed right.

He truly, really hated L!

That exact sentence seemed to have become some kind of mantra and he had no idea of ow many times he'd thought about it.

The same feeling was mirrored in L's pale face. Lashing out again, Light missed the detective by a couple of inches and growling angrily, he glided to the side just fast enough to avoid one of L's fists.

Mold and gravel sprouted around their feet and the smell of dirt and sweat lingered in the air. The upper button of Light's shirt was torn, but he did not care. His clothes were stained with blood anyway. Apparently, dying did not change your outfit, he though sarcastically.

Dodging yet another on of L's punches, he stepped elegantly around the insomniac and aimed a soaring kick at the back of his kneecaps, causing L to cry out in pain as he fell.

_Ah! Sweet revenge!_

He could taste the blood in his mouth and when he licked his lips, he found a deep cut. Wincing, he brought his hand there and his finger gained a crimson hood. Blood? He was slightly miffed about the revelation. Was it even possible to bleed in death? Well, nothing really surprised him anymore.

He scowled.

L, now back at his feet, hair messy, skin dirty and bruised, actually smirked at his expression. It was a dark and twisted smile. A smile that only infuriated the auburn haired male more.

"I hate you!"

With those words, his fist connected with L's jaw. At the crushing sound that appeared, he wondered if broken bones would heal in this place and in the back of his mind, he hoped not.

He wanted L to suffer!

Baring his teeth in an bestial way, he snarled at the detective, whose face was wrenched away from him.

"I fucking _hate_ you!"

L turned his head slowly and Light noticed how his nostrils quivered from tension. His features was more flushed than Light had ever sen it and his mouth was nothing but a thin, rejecting line.

He also had a busted lip and from what Light could see, it was bleeding pretty badly. A thick trail of red ran down his chin, a strong contrast to his the paleness of his skin.

"Well, Kira," he hissed through gritted teeth, blood spraying as he spoke, "your feelings are being returned!"

_That's enough!_

Light's highest wish at that moment was that the detective would just drop dead on the spot. Okay, so technically they were both dead already, but so what?!

"Argh!"

Hell, if fate wasn't gonna help him, he'd make sure of it himself. At least he could provide L with a healthy amount of pain.

Leaping at the detective once again, he placed both his arms around L's waist and tugged him with him so they both fell towards the ground. Landing atop of the detective, he hurriedly straddled his slim hips and before the bastard could do anything in return, he slapped him hard in the face. Noticing how L's black orbs narrowed above the angry, red mark on his left cheek, Light felt the kind of power he used to feel when holding the Death Note.

Yet, it wasn't enough.

He wanted to feel more of it.

He had to!

Raising his hand once again, the auburn haired man aimed for his previous target.

He was about to lower his fist, when one of L's hands shot up and grabbed him by the wrist. In a flurry movements, the detective yanked them around and soon, he was the one pinning Light to the ground.

He was not heavy, but Light could feel the air being knocked out of him as the detective straddled him. L wrapped his legs rapidly around Light's waist so that he could not slither away and panting heavily, he shoved Light against the ground.

The sharp sunlight was blinding and all Light was able to see of L was his eyes, burning with an intense fire.

He writhed furiously and tried his best to push the insomniac off of him, but L wasn't letting go that easily. A spidery hand locked around Light's throat and in a moment of irony, Light realized running out of air was painful even in death. Grasping the detective's elbows he tried desperately to pull him away. He dug his nails into the milky skin and scratched and pinched until he felt blood agglutinate to his fingers.

L did not bow. He did, however, reduce the pressure on Light's trachea.

Obsidian orbs locked with his for a moment and a spidery hand rose high in the air, contours sharp and bony. For some reason, the auburn haired male shut his eyes tightly, blocking out the sight, waiting for the blow.

It never came.

When a couple of quivering seconds had passed by, he frowned slightly. He could still feel L's weight atop of him, but the detective seemed to be completely unmoving.

_What the fuck is going on?_

He cracked an eye open.

L's hand had fallen limp to his side and he was stooping his head, night-colored, wild tresses partly covering his face. Light did not move.

With a defeated sigh, the insomniac shook his head and rolled off his enemy. Slumping back, so that he was lying next to Light, he exhaled heavily before speaking up.

"I really can't stand you, Light-kun." He paused and Light imagined him biting his thumb, "but I can't bring myself to provide you with the same treatment you gave me."

Light knew he wasn't talking about the slap.

"You have killed or hurt everyone I have ever cared about and you represent everything I despise." He sounded tired, and for the first time, Light thought he could hear an echo of the detective's soul within it. A stained and shattered soul.

"You lied, cheated and murdered to get what you wanted." He inhaled deeply, "you killed Watari!"

The accusation came out fiercely and Light actually had the decency to feel a faint sting in his chest. A very faint one, mind you!

He did not answer, as he was currently busy trying to catch his breath. His body ached in several places and his left shoulder felt as if it had snapped out of place. He stared stubbornly up at the bright blue sky and tried to focus on the almost surreal color instead of L's words. He failed miserably.

"I knew it you know," The words were merely whispers, "the moment he deleted all the files." Light clenched his jaws.

He remembered that moment down to every little detail. How L had stared widely and in something akin to fear at the screens when they turned black one by one. The way his own heart had fluttered painfully, as his guts stirred from both excitement and nervousness.

In his mind, he pictured how L's teaspoon had swiveled through the air, almost in slow motion, before it hit the floor. He imagined, like he had done more times than he could ever recall, how L had crunched further in his seat. How he slowly, oh so slowly, had tipped to the side, eyes impossibly round, his shirt billowing like a flag inclining his surrender as he fell.

He had caught him then. Just in time before he crashed to the ground.

Not that he knew why though.

For some reason he could not understand, the thought of L hitting the floor had been unbearable and therefore, he had leaped forward, scooping the detective up in his arms before he connected with the ground.

He remembered the warmth of his nemesis' body against his and recalled the feeling of awe he had felt back then. Awe, both because he had finally achieved his goal and because the great detective L was about to draw his last breath. The thrill of power he had felt at that precise moment, he had yet to experience anything like it. Light had felt like he'd won that day and the second L's eyes slipped out of focus, an enormous burden fell from his shoulders.

He had defeated Ryuuzaki.

Nothing stood in his way of being God anymore.

Well, at least that was what he had believed back then. And it really had seemed that way too.

...Until a certain angel of vengeance came along. Hah! He almost, _almost_ laughed.

Near an angel! The damned brat was nothing short of a devil in disguise!

_Ugh_, he did not want to think about the little shit right now. Not ever really.

It made him sick.

_Go away, Nate River! _

Surprisingly, the image of Near's face dissolved.

He sighed.

The sun felt warm against his face and his hair billowed faintly in a soft breeze.

As they lay there in silence Light found his eyes slipping closed, his mind drifting off.

He wondered if day ever turned into night in this place and tried to imagine what the sky would look like, showered with stars. Would he recognize any of them? Would the map of glimmering dots of light be the same as back on earth? Again the thought about the strangeness of his afterlife and mused upon its purpose.

Why was he here?

Why was_ L _here?

Speaking of whom...

He shifted his head and glanced swiftly at the other man.

The detective was lying on his back ands he had lifted an arm to cover his face, blocking out the strong sunlight. From what Light could see of his face, his eyes were shut, and the image actually brought forth a small shudder from Light as he remembered the last time he had seen those black pools covered behind heavy lids.

"I saw you smiling." The words were like a stab in the back. Seeing as everything seemed to have happened so fast that day, he had not been sure if L had seen the sick smirk that had ascended on his lips. Apparently, he had. Well, unless he probably would not have reacted the way he did when he met Light here.

Suddenly, Light could not decide whether he found the news pleasing or not.

He scoffed inwardly.

Of course he enjoyed hearing that! That meant L had felt defeated right before he passed away and that he had known he was beaten.

Somehow, his victory did not seem any bigger.

"So?" He replied, striving to keep his voice as plain as possible.

L shrugged. "Nothing I suppose..." A spidery hand started pulling at the grass beneath it, long fingers wrapping around the delicate straws.

An awkward silence followed, where neither of the two seemed to find something to say.

The hatred Light felt for L was still pulsing within him, but somehow, he did not feel like it was about to tear him to pieces anymore. He was probably only worn out after their fight.

Out of the blue, he wondered if one could get hungry here. It would not surprise him. Every other human feeling seemed to be present, so the thought of a possible hunger did not appear all that unlikely.

It was really weird laying here with Ryuuzaki.

Suddenly, he came to think of something.

"What's your real name?" He blurted.

He watched as the raven haired male's face tightened. "Why do you ask, Yagami-kun?"

Light felt annoyed. "Forget it!" He barked, turning his head away, gaze traveling, taking in the beauty surrounding them.

Forcing the detective out of his mind, he stubbornly focused on the sharp mountain peeks and tried to count how many of them there was. He gave up after a while however. The view appeared endless and again, he wished he knew where they were. It was all so perfect.

A world, painted only by nature. A place where all was silent and still, and each thing seemed to be in a newborn state, still covered by the first layer of dust. It was as if the landscape had never been touched by human hands. There was no pollution, no such things as cars, trains or skyscrapers. This place could not get any farther from Tokyo really. In fact, Light was pretty sure that nowhere on earth held a nature so pure as this. There were no traces of technology and the silence was overwhelming. It was indeed perfect. ...Except from the fact that it held a certain dark haired detective in it. He sighed. L always seemed to be the one behind Light's agony. L. _L, L, L_! Always L! For a split second, he wondered what would have happened if he and L had met under different circumstances. Like, through College or something. Maybe Yagami Light and the great detective L actually could have become close friends? He shook his head mentally when he realized where he was heading.

Ridiculous thoughts!

No matter how they had met, Light would never have taken a liking to L. He was simply too strange and annoying to get along with.

At least from Light's point of view.

"It's L."

The smooth voice that interrupted his trail of thoughts, almost caused him to jump.

L?

Light rolled his eyes and fought the urge to snort sarcastically. This was getting old.

"Yeah, sure thing Ryuuzaki." He pinched the bridge of his nose and hissed in pain as he swiped his lip, "if you don't wanna spill it, then don't. I really can't say I care. Just stop playing this foolish game of yours."

L actually chuckled and Light wondered what the fuck could be so funny. Well, this was L after all! Since when had anything he did or said made sense?

"You obviously weren't listening Light-kun," Oh great, he was doing the name thing again. Light bit his tongue. Did this torture ever stop?

"How can you say that Ryuuzaki? Of course I was listening to you. You're the one who—"

"It's L, Light-kun. L Lawliet."

Light's jaw went slack.

* * *

A/N: :Sighs: Please review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Warnings:** Eventual Slash!

**Disclaimer:** Not mine...

**A/N:** So, I am sorry it took me so long to update, but I will not leave you hanging for a very long time I think. I have been very busy getting ready for my graduating exams and celebrations so please forgive me.

Also, I'd like to apologize about possible errors and misspellings. Be kind and keep in mind that English is still not my native language.  
Please enjoy!

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Three_

_"An old foe"_

-

"Your name is L?" It came out nothing but a hoarse croak.

The wind suddenly appeared to have died and the sun did not warm him any more. It was as if the surroundings changed in only a matter of seconds and Light would not have been surprised if it had started to rain just then. What the hell was this man on about?

"L?" He repeated, "L Lawliet?"

Light knew he probably looked as if his eyes were about to pop right out of their sockets and his heart hammered awfully fast in his chest.

He inhaled deeply before speaking up again, afraid that his brain might actually shut down if he did not provide it with loads of oxygen.

He had not expected this.

In fact, when he had asked L for his real name only moments ago, he had not expected that the insomniac would answer at all. He had imagined L to give a cold reply, a deadpanned stare or maybe even stalk off, not this!

"Ryuuzaki, are you serious?"

L shrugged faintly and removed the arm that was covering his face. Light saw that his lip was still bleeding and congratulated himself for throwing in such a nice punch. Perhaps the cut would even leave a scar? He supposed that was not so unlikely, seeing as L's lips were not at all fleshy. A scar would have plenty of space to form.

A trail of red ran down the detective's chin and some places it had already begun to dry. He seemed tired and his eyelids rested heavily above his dark-rimmed eyes.

Suppressing the urge to laugh at L's seemingly poor state, he focused on the upcoming response in stead. He could mock the bastard later.

"Do I tend to joke a lot Light-kun?" L's voice was smooth and emotionless as always and Light wanted to split the detective's upper-lip as well.

"You, joke? I didn't even know you were familiar with that word!"

The auburn haired male scowled and turned away from the spidery figure laying beside him.

He could not believe this. L could not for real be named L? That was simply too ridiculous!

Here he had been trying for what seemed like an eternity to figure out the detective's identity, and in reality his name was not an alias at all? He was completely blind to the irony in it, and with a growing irritation, he realized that he was actually somewhat shocked by L's revelation. This could not be true! He refused to believe it!

"You're lying then." He stated, matter-of-factly.

A moment of silence passed by before the detective opened his mouth once more. "No, Light-kun, I am not lying. Why would I lie about my name now? You are not capable of killing me twice, and even if I dislike bowing to your wishes like this, I cannot say I care about hiding my identity any longer."

He paused and now, Light was positive he was chewing on his thumb.

"What parents in their right mind would call their child L? A single letter?"

Said 'letter' gave a small shrug, a gesture that did not suit him somehow.

"I am not entirely sure how I got my name Light-kun, but Watari seemed to like the idea of it, and did not let it go as I grew up." He peered over at Light, "he raised me, you know."

Light could only nod. This was the first time he had ever heard L talk about his past in a way that made him think he was telling the truth. He wanted to know more.

"You grew up at this Orphanage for gifted children." The statement caused L's eyes to widen, but his features soon went back to normal, and Light assumed that he figured that the investigation team had been digging around after his death.

"Yes," he simply replied and once again, Light was surprised by his honestly. "Watari took me to Whammy's house and told everyone there that my name was L. No one but him knew the rest of it."

"Lawliet you mean?"

The name felt alien on his tongue.

It had a foreign sound to it and Light found himself wondering if L's parents were perhaps French. It could appear so.

"Yes."

"Hn..."

The extent of their current situation suddenly hit him.

Why was he having this conversation with L? They had been trying to rip each other apart only minutes ago and now they were both acting like surrendered idiots. The tension was at a minimum and if he closed his eyes, the mood could even appear peaceful!

"When I was head of the Kira-case, I could not tell anyone my real name and as you can probably imagine, at least I had to keep it a secret to you."

A shuffle inclined that L was getting up, and Light quickly followed, somewhat afraid that the insomniac was going to kick him while he was laying down. L seemed to understand this, for the instant Light moved to get to his feet, a small chuckle left him, causing Light's eye to twitch.

"However," L's voice was as calm as ever, "even though I suspected that you were Kira, I also saw you as a companion," Light's eyes narrowed, "and there was nothing I wanted more than telling you my real name."

"W-what?" He was not able to stop the question from spilling from his lips.

L shot him a deadpanned stare. "When you are friends with someone, you built your relationship on trust, right?"

For some reason, it appeared that he was asking because he actually wanted a decent answer, but this was L, so Light would bet his head on the fact that he had asked for a reason. Therefore, he merely cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, I suppose..." Noticing how L's expression turned into one of curiosity, he nearly sniggered before continuing, "I have never had many friends Ryuuzaki."

L ignored his little chuckle.

"Well, at least I felt like opening up to you Light-kun," his tone changed and Light could hear the daggers hidden in it. "But I could not and you know perfectly well why."

L stared at him and Raito felt as if his very soul was being exposed under that piercing, bottomless gaze.

It was stupid really, but L's eyes had always had that effect on him.

He remembered how those onyx orbs, when directed at him, had jolted him awake in the middle of the night during the time they were chained together. How the intensity they held within their dark depths alone, was enough to send shivers down his spine.

It was a completely irrational feeling.

L undoubtedly seemed quite harmless on the outside and despite his remarkable fighting skills, the insomniac tended to appear rather childish, naïve even.

When he was alive, Light had been unable to tell whether the detective was acting or not and to be frank, he did not know now either. However, he suspected the whole thing to be a lie.

He was simply too innocent that it would fit into any picture.

Even if L had never had friends himself, nobody could be as socially awkward as him! Then, they should have been put away, unable to function in a normal society. Besides, L's occupation as a detective ought to have mussed his 'pure' soul more than he wanted everyone to acknowledge, and Light refused to believe that his hands were not the slightest bit bloodstained.

Being_ L_ must have taken it's toll in the spidery man.

Therefore, the emptiness of his gaze gave Light the creeps and meeting those eyes always evoked this unnerving feeling inside of him. He knew that was one of the reasons why he hated the man so much. It was as if L had always been able to see behind his facade, and not only did he do that, but he was also nearly impossible for Light to read as well.

Because of his, L was the worst thinkable opponent. Fighting him was like fighting a shadow, or smoke. You never knew where you had him, or even who he was. He brought no past, no name, no identity.

It was almost as if he did not truly exist.

He was, and Light actually shuddered at the thought, like a ghost.

However, ghosts were nothing compared to Gods.

Therefore, L could never beat Him.

Light chuckled darkly at this thought as a somewhat chilly gust wind caused his hair to flutter before his eyes.

Out of the blue, Light came to think of the day L died. He remembered the detective standing in the rain and feeling how ice ran down his spine, L words rung in his ears;

"_Since you were born, have you ever told the truth even once?"_

He remembered his own confusion at those words.  
L had seemed to be so certain that Light was Kira just then and he had actually been afraid that L had somehow figured out the truth.  
However, he had refused to give in and shortly after that, his calm demeanor had paid off. Rem had killed L, and he had won.

At least he had been the winner if the battle of wits. _And_, he reassured himself quietly, he would have won the whole thing and achieved his goal, had other people around him not acted so foolish.

Now, L's words evoked an odd feeling he could not name, inside of him. It was not like they affected him badly, no not at all, he just felt... annoyed.

That, of course, could have something to do with the fact that it had been L who said it, but Light was not completely sure of that either. The whole thing was a bit confusing.

Well, affected or not, it did not really matter. Light was not going to blurt out with something like that in front of L anyway.

"Yes," he replied coldly to L's previous question. "I know. You suspected me of being Kira."

The frail looking detective gave a short nod. "And I was in fact, right."

A smirk made its way to Light's lips.

"Indeed."

Again, Light thought he saw that predatory gleam in the detective's eyes. And he found himself amazed by it.

Since when had L been showing his feelings?

He supposed it did not matter in the afterlife, or what the heck this was. L was already defeated, so he did not need to keep secrets any longer. At least not those concerning his identity.

"I'm really ticking you off am I not?" asked Light, adding a very nonchalant tinge to his tone.

As expected, dark eyes narrowed dangerously and L peered at him through waterfalls of black, wild tresses.

"What do you mean Light-kun?"

The hazel-eyed man felt his smirk widen. "You are really annoyed about the fact that you could not convict me for my so called crimes, aren't you?" He paused and before L could even think of a reply, he turned his back on him and started to saunter down the hill they were standing on.

He was determined to figure out what was in that jungle down there, and quite frankly, he did not care if L joined him or not.  
Actually, if he did, there _were_ chances that he'd fall off a cliff or something. Light's heart gave a pleasant flutter.  
Yes, that would have been enjoyable.

"Where are you going?" L called from behind him, and judging by the source of his voice, he had not moved at all. Good, then Light would be left alone.

"Why does it matter to you Ryuuzaki—I mean L...?" a snort, "whatever your name is.."

He kept climbing downwards and did not even care to look back. L could do what the hell he wanted.

His footsteps triggered small landslides of stones to spill down the steep hill and he understood that he needed to watch where he was stepping very carefully. At least till he reached the vegetation. The ground was loose here, and he did not want to be buried under a pile of stone. Small or not.

That would have been too humilia—

"Ah!"

He heard his own surprised yelp mingle with L's as his wrist was jerked backwards in an all too familiar way. He felt, more than saw, L being pulled towards him, and when the detective collided harshly with his back, nothing prevented him from loosing his balance.

They fell head over heals down the mountain-side.

* * *

**A/N:** Haha! Soooo, what do you reckon just happened? And WHY? Well, I am sorry that it is a bit short. I promise, I will make it up to you! Please point out errors! And tell me what you think okay??

Love,  
Naro


	4. Chapter 4

**Warnings:** Uh... blood?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Death Note!

**A/N:** So, here I am with the fourth chapter! I really enjoyed writing this ans therefore, the update came pretty fast!

You guys are such nice reviewers! Please do not be afraid of telling me whatever it is that you think! I am at full alert of your opinions!  
Thank you for being supportive!

By the way, there _will_ be yaoi in this... eventually! Please be patient until then! I am still a bit nervous about this whole fic, seeing as I am desperately afraid of messing up my favorite fandom!

Now, on to the chapter! Please enjoy!

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Four_

_"Beaten"_

-

Large, edgy stones were ripped loose as they tumbled down the mountain-side, some of them big enough to actually crush them. The sounds that surrounded them grew fast and steadily, until it was a roar of clattering stones and other hard surfaces slamming together. It ringed in their ears, and Light was surprised he had yet to turn deaf.

Luckily, most of the gray murder-weapons were thrown down before them, or slid free from under their bodies so fast that they reached the forest in a matter of seconds. Sharp, twisted roots stuck up beneath them, scratching their bodies mercilessly, leaving their skin bruised and bloodied.

With each trow, Light felt the air being knocked out of him, and sometime during their descent, L's knee hit him in the face, causing great pain as his nose made a loud, cracking sound. His stomach was fighting a battle on its own, as the urge to throw up was stronger than he had ever felt it. He imagined his guts to be completely squished and his insides nothing but a bloody mass.

Quite frankly, he was frightened as hell.

He dared not keep his eyes open for long, but from the small glimpses he got when he took an occasional peek, he saw the surroundings only as fleeting images in green, gray and white. His vision was somewhat clouded with pain, and every time they were thrown around, he begged to whatever God there was that L would not land on top of him. Which he, of course, did quite frequently.

Both of them kept groaning and sometimes, Light could hear L wince in pain.

His whole corpus hurt and he bet he had hit his head a dozen times. He was bleeding badly from the nose and his palms were scraped to the bone it seemed.

How the fuck had it come to this?

One second he had been leaving L on the hill, and the next they were both crashing down the mountain side?

He could not believe it!

He had yet to check his wrist, but he was sure that if he did, he would see a familiar chain and the dark metal of the cuff attached above his hand would have appeared lifeless compared to his skin.

The tug he had felt just before their departure had already been burned into his memory, it had even bothered him in his dreams, long after L's death. He had felt it a million times before it seemed and had it not been for the urgency of their current situation, Light would have been raging mad, to the point where he would have gnawed off his own arm in pure agony.

How the hell could he possibly be chained to L again?!

Tears were already forming in his eyes, and gritting his teeth desperately, he tried to withstand the jolts of pain that shot through him each and every time his body slammed into the ruthless stone-wall.  
The trip down was drawn out and incredibly long lasting. Sometimes, it seemed as if they were almost flying, air slipping through their clothes, icy and unforgiving, making goosebumps appear on their broken skin. Somewhere along the way, Light had somehow managed to get a grip on L and now, he was clinging to him like a baby. This, of course, made the chances of L landing atop of him bigger, but it also prevented him from flailing his limbs during the fall, so that they were in less danger of breaking.

He held on to L's lither form as if it was his lifeline, and oddly enough he found himself wondering why the detective had not already shattered, as frail as he looked.

L, himself, was gasping loudly and his fingers were tangled in Light's hair, the grip painfully tight. The back of the insomniac's shirt felt warm and wet against Light's hands and the auburn haired male was unsure of whether it was blood or sweat.

Probably both.

Glimmers of sunshine flickered upon his retina and his eyelashes fluttered uncontrollably as he was now unable to keep his eyes fully closed. Dry sobs escaped him and when his cheek was crushed against the harsh, moving ground, a loud cry of pain echoed through the air. It burned like a thousand bonfires and every ripped muscle in his entire body tensed as he tried to overcome the gruesome sensation. At that moment, he wanted to die, but remembered without a single trace of irony, that he was already dead. By now, he was sure, this had to be Hell.

Not only was he attached to L once more, but he was being knocked senseless by a damn mountain!

Fate was such a cruel thing.

However, it seemed said fate, soon turned the tables and suddenly, their bodies collided with something that could not be anything but trees and Light did not have to open his eyes to understand that they had finally reached the forest. Leaves and branches whipped across their thorn forms and after a particular loud bang only centimeters from his ear, L's hands released him and the only thing that prevented them from parting with each other was Light's aggressive hold on him.

Next, his back slammed against a wooden surface and Light found himself laying unmoving on the ground, covered by a dead-weight he assumed had to be L. The detective was not moving, and Light could not feel his breath either. A spidery arm had fallen in front of the young genius' face and the delicate, pale skin was smeared with blood. It looked as if the insomniac had been suffering far worse than himself during their fall.

The pressure on his lungs were beginning to hurt and Light understood that he needed air. He needed to get L off of himself. This, however, seemed to be an almost impossible task, seeing as Light did not even think he was capable of lifting a finger. He was trapped between L's seemingly lifeless form and the massive tree-trunk behind him.

Kira felt like crying just then.

Blood hammered through his veins and his heart was pounding so rapidly that Light was afraid it might stop from exhaustion. Crimson poured from his nostrils and the upper half of his face was nothing but an inferno of pain. He was sure some of his teeth were loose and his kneecaps felt as if they had moved several inches form their right spot. It was fair to say he had never been this beat up in his life and to be honest, Light Yagami did not like being in pain. Quite frankly, he detested it.

He suspected that had they not already been dead, this fall would have caused them both to die, if L wasn't already dead that was.

He knew he had to pry the detective off, it anything, so that he could check if he was still alive. Not that he cared about that really. All he wanted was the information, which he was sure had to be useful.

Was it possible that one could die over again in this place?

What even the answer to that question would be, Light sincerely needed to breathe properly now, and finding the last remains of his strength, he managed to force his leg free from beneath L. After that, their tangled forms soon unlatched, and within a couple of seconds, L was laying face down on the forest floor, beside Light.

Panting, Light let his oxygen supply fill, and squeezing his eyes shut, he lifted a hand to his nose.

Oddly enough, it did not seem to be broken, but the pain was almost unbearable nonetheless. Furrowing his brows, he wondered if broken limbs could heal themselves here. He had been so sure that he had heard the bone snap.

Groaning, he slithered a couple of inches away from the trunk, head spinning with every movement. He needed to check upon L.

As he forced himself closer, he remembered something, and with a great effort, he held out his wrist.

No cuffs.

This made him frown deeply.

How could there be no cuffs?

He had felt the tug from the chain and L had indeed come flying against him.

He shook his head and immediately regretted it, as everything began to rotate. Closing his eyes for a brief moment, he calmed his breathing and focused on the task ahead of him.

Or rather L.

When he finally reached the unconscious investigator, he lifted his hand and grabbed a hold of a bony shoulder. Twisting the detective around, so that his dirt-covered face was pointing towards the sky, his fingers searched for his pulse. For a couple of breathless seconds, he waited, but just as he was beginning to wonder if the insomniac was in fact dead, he felt a small, weak throb against his index-finger.

He was alive then.

Light did not know if he felt disappointed or relieved.

A mixture of both, he presumed.

As his hand covered L's pale, fragile neck, he suddenly found himself thinking about how easy it would have been to kill him, had they ended up it a state like this back on earth.

After a fair amount of time, he noticed how L's chest heaved and fell, very vaguely, but he was for sure breathing.

All of a sudden realizing that he had yet to remove his hand from L's neck, he quickly tucked it to his chest and for a moment, he almost chuckled at his own behavior.

For a swift second, he had reminded himself of L, the way he always touched things as if they were infested with bacterias. This thought, however, he killed very shortly after it was born, and the snigger that had been playing in his throat was strangled before it could erupt.

He and L were nothing alike.

Staring down at the detective, he wrinkled his nose a little, face mirroring the disgust he felt inside.

Seeing L like this, all defenseless an wounded, kind of decreased his status and made him a much weaker opponent.

Kira did not engage in battle with weak people.

He scoffed inwardly.

This was supposed to be L, one of the world's three greatest detectives. This broken wreck of a man was supposed to be his worst enemy!

Right now, he looked more like a sleeping kid.

Obsidian orbs were hidden behind heavy lids and his unruly, black hair framed his features, making them appear somewhat softer than they really were. There was nothing crooked about his posture now and Light was brought back to the day of L's death once again.

He had looked so peaceful back then and even though victory had hammered in his chest, Light had felt somewhat envious of that peace. He recalled that he had been wondering if the detective had been feeling that peace himself when he died and for some reason, the thought of that had not angered him. It was not important whether the insomniac had died without knowing who was responsible. Even if L never knew that Light Yagami was Kira, Light would have won.

He tried to push himself to his feet, but apparently, he had spent his last powers to get over to L. Instead of actually moving, he fell, quite literally, atop of L, head landing on the detective's chest.

Cursing, he tried to move, but his mind was foggy and his limbs did not seem to obey him. He twisted his fingers in L's white, cotton shirt, but he could not prevent himself from slipping into a welcoming darkness.

-

He woke with a yelp, followed by a hiss of pain as he was stirred from his sleep by something moving underneath him. Blinking, he realized that he was soaking wet, and as he lifted his head to look up towards the sky, he felt heavy droplets collide with his face. The sky had darkened and the clouds lay as a iron carpet, hiding away the sun. The treetops seemed unnaturally far away and the ground felt muddy and slippery against him.

He lowered his gaze and found black orbs staring widely at him and though they seemed a bit confused at the moment, he quickly decided that he should move before they turned vengeful.

What the hell had just happened?

Apparently. He had passed out on top of L, and God only knew how long he had been unconscious. Groaning, he rolled off the detective and winced as every single part of his body burned. He was stiffer than an old man and on top of that, he was cold.

Ice cold.

He supposed they had been laying like this for quite some time and he wondered of he would perhaps catch a cold, if that was possible here.

"Yagami-kun?" L's voice was stained and barely above a whisper. He appeared to be freezing as well, judging by the way his words trembled.

"Hai." He managed to croak, teeth clattering violently.

"What happened?" He sounded weak and Light turned his head to look at him. L was still on his back, face fully exposed to the poring rain. His skin was sleek, and tiny, crystalline droplets clung to his long, dark lashes. The left side of his face was badly bruised and he had a bleeding cut on his forehead. His now, see through shirt clung to his body, tattered with red spots all over.

"We fell." Was all Light cared to reply, and he almost felt amused by his own words. It would not take a genius to figure that out. L seemed to be thinking the same, as he gave a small snort, before pursing his lips faintly.

"We are not wearing chains Light-kun." Was the slow reply and Light's own confusion was mirrored in his voice.

"I know." He answered.

"But you felt it too, right? The jerk?"

"Hai."

Light had no clue of what was going on. What kind of trick had destiny, or rather Death, pulled this time?

There was no such things as invisible object, and Light had never believed in magic. Well, he dryly reminded himself, he had not believed in Shinigamis either until he met Ryuk.

Ryuk that betraying bastard.  
He was still angry at the Death God for writing his name down, but he also knew that it was meant to be that way from the start. He had picked up the Death Note and therefore accepted the deal that said that Ryuk would take his life.

However, he had not wanted him to do it so fast.

He could have bloody waited!

Light guessed the Shingiami had thought he had lost and no longer found the human amusing.

Still he _could_ have waited a while longer! At least that would have saved Near -that damned brat- the recognition.

Urgh... He really needed to keep that white haired bastard out of his mind.

They lay in silence for a while, neither of them capable of speaking. They were both covered in mud, the deep brown mixing with vibrant red. Somehow, the rain felt soothing, and it dulled some of the pain from their open wounds. Light closed his eyes and let the water stream down his face, feeling how it washed away some of the blood and pooled in the deep, open scar on his cheek. Despite his shuddering, he felt rather content just then and wondered vaguely if he was about to pass out again.

Then, a lighting ripped the clouds and only seconds later, thunder followed with a deep rumble.

He was startled as a cold, wet hand was placed on his arm, and when he turned his head, he saw L gazing at him, pupils narrowed.

"We should move Yagami-kun."

He knew the detective was right.

Staying under a big tree like they did now, was not a good idea. None of them knew how to get out of the forest, but they were both intelligent enough to realize that they needed to at least find another resting spot.

Gnawing on his lip, the auburn haired male nodded.

"You're right.

He proceeded with collecting all his willpower, forcing himself to tilt over and bucking his knees while pushing upwards from the ground. At his side, L was doing the same thing, and after what seemed like hours, they were both more or less standing on their feet. L, however, seemed to have a sprawled ankle, seeing as he fought hard not to lose his balance on one leg.

Light's knees threatened to give away under him any minute, but there was no way he was going to back down now.

Hesitantly, he took a step towards the detective, who lurched and nearly fell over. Light caught him just before he fell and watched how ebony eyes widened.

"Let's go." He said simply, keeping the insomniac standing.

Light had realized that if that "invisible" -he still did not want to believe it- chain was still connecting them somehow, he would not be able to move unless L did.

Not caring to elaborate, he placed an arm around the detective's waist and began to walk, feeling how L leaned against him like a sack of potatoes.

How much stranger could it get really?

He quickly reminded himself that this was only necessary. It wasn't like he enjoyed helping the detective or anything.  
He had to if he wanted to get going.

This was nothing but a selfish act, he assured himself as they teetered through the deep, overgrown forest.

* * *

**A/N:** Yup! That was kind of sweet wasn't it? At least I thought it was! Hee hee.. :swallows: So, I hope you enjoyed that!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** Not mine!

**Warnings:** Slash eventually and some cursing!

**A/N:** Sorry for the late update! Haha, I laughed quite a lot when I read your reviews! Yep, that moutain was indeed tall! And they are taking quite the beating! :Laughs:

Please enjoy! Thank you for all those reviews!

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Five_

_"War"_

-

By the time the thunder stopped, they had been walking for quite a while. The rain was still drenching them and the sky had yet to calm down, but Light was only happy that they were seemingly out of danger for now. After all that had happened lately, he would not put it past fate to strike them both with lightning.

Beside the sound of their movements, the dark, massive forest was completely silent and Light did not know is he found the fact pleasing or not.

There were two kinds of silence.

The peaceful one and the dangerous one.

The silence when show falls, like soft, crystalline flower petals to the ground, the one before a storm. The silence of still water or the one where the spark moves towards the dynamite. Light could not figure out what kind of silence was surrounding them, and somehow, that precise thought had him more than a little worried.

Gritting his teeth, he forced the forest out of his mind and continued to move on, L by his side. The insomniac still could not stand on his own legs and he clasped Light's waist without shame. Pale, spidery fingers dug into his hip and the clutch was beginning to hurt slightly.

Briefly, Light wondered if the detective felt awkward about this kind of proximity. He knew he did.

Well, he thought, L was L. He'd never known much of such things as privacy or personal space anyway.

He grimaced.

Never, in his life on earth, had he pictured death to be like this. He had expected almost anything when he drew his last breath. Silence, pain, white bright light, angels, _ladi-fucking-da_, but not this. Anything but this.

Yet, here he was. Sauntering through an overgrown, rainy forest with L, chained to the man by invisible cuffs.

_Completely_ normal, right?

For what seemed like the thousand time since he woke up on that mountain, he questioned why he was here. What was this place? What was its purpose?

And most importantly, what the hell was _L_ doing here with him?

He shook his head. All those damned questions were giving him a headache.

L was starting to feel heavier against him and just as the realization struck him, one of his feet slipped on the ground and nearly sent them both crashing to the forest floor. He regained his balance in the last minute, and cursing, he used whatever was left of his strength to pull the insomniac up. The surroundings had not changed much, except from the fact that the big silhouettes of the mountains were hidden behind the green, twisted ceiling above them. The whole place smelled of wet vegetation and mold and in the dim light, everything gained a somewhat grayish color.

His legs felt wobbly. They were not going to make it much farther.

In what seemed like the last minute, he spotted a large, fallen trunk on the ground, between the heavy trees. Pulling his willpower together, he practically dragged L the last couple of feet. When they finally reached their goal, Light dropped the detective without a warning, eliciting a surprised yelp from him.

Light smirked.

L did not see the smirk, but huffed slightly as he all but crawled over to the giant trunk and swung himself up to sit on it. Once he was safely seated, he glanced over at Light, whom was now leaning against the twisted root, washed clean by the rain.

They were both breathing heavily and Light brought a hand to his forehead.

"How are your wounds, Light-kun?" L's voice broke the silence and Light blinked, a bit startled at first.

He shifted his gaze to the hunched figure upon the trunk.

L was regarding him through the pouring rain, dark bangs slick against his pale, wet skin. He looked tired, and the shadows beneath his eyes seemed even darker than usual.

Shrugging, Light dug his fingers into the slippery ground beneath him.

He did not reply to the detective's question.

He wasn't even sure if L meant it, or _how_ he meant it.

For the record, his wounds were still throbbing, but how strange it might have seemed, the bones seemed to meddle themselves in this place. His nose was not a bloody mass any longer and his ribcage seemed solid enough. The deep, bleeding scratch on his cheek, however, was still aching painfully and all the other cuts he had gotten from the mountain's rough treatment were burning mercilessly. He wondered vaguely if L's bones had healed as well, and for some weird reason, it took him several seconds to come up with the wish that they had not. And even then, he wasn't sure he really meant it. Scowling, he glared at the insomniac, whom just returned his gaze with an empty stare.

How typical L.

"For your information, my wounds are okay, Ryuuzaki. After being shot, this can hardly be considered as more than a slight annoyance."

L nodded. "I see."

Then, "about that, Light-kun, who did shoot you?"

Light felt himself growing angry at the question, and remembering Matsuda's tear-rimmed face and trembling figure, he sent the detective a crushing, heated glare.

He was not going to tell L that that _idiot_ Matsuda had been the one who gave him the bullet.

"Stop asking me that! There is absolutely no way I am going to tell you who shot me!"

"Why not?" L sounded genuinely curious, but Light suspected him of being mocking nonetheless.

"I will not give you the satisfaction!" he all but yelled back.

A couple of silent moments went by. Then L spoke up, voice strangely hushed. "Why would I feel satisfied by knowing who shot you? I was merely curious Light-kun."

A pause.

"You're death does not amuse me."

--

_She was sitting with her legs crossed atop of a massive, flat rock. Her blond locks glimmering like pure gold in the light of the dying sun and her round, deep brown eyes were looking directly at him. Her lips, painted blood red, were slightly parted, cheeks flushed pink._

_Roses to her otherwise porcelain skin._

_Her skirt fell in delicate folds around her bare legs and the black fabric was a strong contrast to the pale flesh._

_Smooth, dark velvet hugged her chest, which was pushed upwards as she rested her weight on the arms that were stretched out behind her. She wore a somewhat sad look and in the depths of her eyes, a painful little gleam lingered._

_For a moment he was annoyed. Why did she regard him in such a way? Hadn't she used to be all smiles and sparkles when he was around? This look of agony was not supposed to graze her, not while watching him at least._

_Misa had never looked at him like that._

_Now, she seemed broken, defeated, and the hope that had always shone within those brown depths seemed to be completely gone. She was miserable, he could tell and suddenly, he found himself wanting to do something about it._

_This feeling was entirely new to him._

_Before, he had never once cared about her actual well-being. Ha had used her. Used her without hesitation Taken advantage of the love she harbored for him and never once felt bad about it._

_In the beginning of their relationship, the only thing keeping him from killing her when he considered her useless, was Rem._

_The Shinigami had always been there to protect her, and he had known that the creature did not lie when it said Yagami Light would be instantly killed if he tried to get rid of Amane Misa._

_He had always wondered how a being such as powerful and old as a Shinigami could ever fall in love with a simple human being, Misa nonetheless._

_As a matter of fact, he had been over and over about that in his mind, but he could not comprehend how the Death God had managed to ever give birth to such feelings towards the petite blonde._

_He had tried to ask Ryuk about it, but every time he mentioned it, an eerie, plastic smirk appeared in the God's face and Light had soon come to terms with the fact that Ryuk was nothing like Rem._

_He was far more cynical, and Light could not in his wildest dreams imagine the true owner of his notebook to ever fall in love with a human.  
__That simply wasn't Ryuk._

_So, what had possessed Rem? What qualities was hidden inside Misa Amane? What was so spescial about her that a mighty God of Death could fall in love with her?_

_He had no clue._

_Sighing, he realized he's never really know either._

_Rem was gone._

_After the Shinigami's departure, he had found that she was rather useful, and even if he did not love her back, or even liked her, he had chosen to keep her around. She had been possessing the eyes, and he had come to see how useful her puppy-like adoration of him could be._

_She had never questioned his orders and always obeyed his will, no matter what._

_Sure, she had been a royal pain in the ass sometimes, and he had wanted to write her name in the Death Note more than once, but regardless, he had kept her by his side. He guessed now, she had been somewhat bound to him, like he was to her._

_He furrowed his brows. _

_Seeing her again was entirely different from what he had imagined. He had thought he would have become irritated by the mere sight of her, but that however, wasn't the case.  
__When his gaze met her's, her appearance changed a little and when he saw the tiny quivering smile that grazed her lips, he felt as if an enormous burden was lifted from his shoulders. __All of a sudden, his heart fluttered pleasantly in his chest and a warm feeling spread through his body. A feeling he had not felt since long before he found the small, black notebook. He gasped, and with eyes wide as saucers, he took a step forward._

_Noticing how her hair billowed slightly in the wind, he moved even closer to her and had to lift an arm to cover his eyes. The orange sunlight was blinding and now, he could only see her contours._

_"Misa?" He breathed, but gained no response. The figure on the rock was motionless and the unnerving silence urged him to move forward. Blinking against the sharp light, he reached out an arm._

_The moment his palm touched her knee, all colors disappeared and the sun died in a flash. All that was left was this thick, gray fog and through it, he could see her eyes burning at him. Deep, darkened pools of night and horror were staring at him._

_Shallow and soulless._

_Burning at him._

_At nothing._

_He screamed._

--

He jolted awake with a forced whimper, his throat dry and neck tensed. Tears rested in the corners if his eyes and he gritted his teeth almost painfully.

It was still raining, judging by the droplets that it his face and he was lying on his side, one of his arms tucked under his head.

Apparently, he had fallen asleep beside the trunk and his clothes were now coated in deep brown mud. His shirt clung to his body, sticky substance squirming through the bullet holes in the white, soft fabric. The sky had darkened noticeably and Light wondered if it would become completely dark. He had not meant to fall asleep, but he suspected that he had more or less passed out due to his former blood loss and the energy he had used to support L earlier. His body still felt weak, but his head was somewhat lighter.

A rustle of clothes told him that L was still around and when Light turned his head to look at the detective through curtains ow sweaty bangs, a small, ghostlike smirk found it's ways to his lips.

"Having nightmares Light-kun?"

Light inwardly scowled, but he refused to give L the satisfaction of knowing he had managed to upset him, so he merely huffed and turned his head away. He had no idea of what that dream was supposed to have meant and quite frankly, the almond-eyed genius did not want to dwell upon it. It was nothing but a bad dream.

A creepy, bad dream.

"Why do you care, Lawliet?" He spat back.

Just as he said it, he noticed from the corner of his eye how L flinched and he felt blood rush to his cheeks. He had not really meant to call L by his real name, the words had just slipped from his tongue.

He had been wanting to mock the insomniac, not address him by using his birth name.

It just... happened.

He bit his lip, but refused to look at the black haired man. Whatever the reaction from L would be, he was not going to face the detective and show him the flush in his face.

"Hn..." L's soft humming broke the piercing silence that had erupted.

"Maybe the dream was of no such nature?" Apparently, he was ignoring the latest happening.

Light raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the former investigator once more.

"What?"

"Well," he drawled on, "you kept murmuring Amane's name, so..."

Light's mouth almost fell open. "I did what?"

L gave a small, almost invisible shrug.

"You uttered her name several times while you were asleep, so it's only natural that I assumed you were dreaming about her. Perhaps Light-kun did not have a nightmare at all?"

At this last comment, the hazel-eyes male grimaced thoroughly. "What? Ack! No!"

L merely shook his head. "Is that the way to speak about your girlfriend, Light-kun?" He bit his lip, "at least she used to be your gi—"

"I know, Ryuuzaki!" Light all but hissed, "but that does not mean I dream of her like that! What on earth would be... _arousing_ about Misa?!"

The tiniest of smirks grazed the detective's lips. "Well, aside from her infamous intellect... her legs perhaps?"

This time, Light's mouth did fall open. For a breathtaking moment, he just stared at L, whom was now biting his nails thoughtfully.

"Ryuuzaki— I mean L... did you— did you just attempt to joke?"

L shrugged again, but a mischievous gleam flickered in his coal colored eyes.

"Perhaps I did."

Without his permission, Light's lips tugged upwards, and before he knew it, he was laughing. He had not meant to actually react like that, but there was nothing he could do about it really.

L looked a bit flabbergasted at the sound of his laughter at first, and his surprised expression only made it increase. Clutching his stomach, the previous mass-murderer felt tears starting to pour from his eyes, the salty liquid mingling with the rain. He felt how his insides seemed to bubble and throwing his head back, his chest rose and fell in rapid spasms as the amused noises rolled off his tongue.

He could not stop.

As his laughter grew louder and more passionate, he forgot completely that he was indeed laughing because of something L had said and only enjoyed the sensations that coursed through him. He could not remember the last time he had let himself go like this, the last time he had actually laughed. Laughed in genuine amusement.

It felt so extremely wonderful!

Until he stared choking, that was.

His breaths became short, muffled gasps and he was almost unable to breathe. Through the blurry mass of rain and tears, he saw L watching him, eyes wide.

Still quite baffled, the insomniac stuck his head forth.

"Light-kun, are you all right? You seem a bit— Ah!"

When the pile of mud connected with his chest, the detective's hands flew up on their own accord and the somewhat shocked gasp that escaped him made Light's grin widen.

Still laughing, he watched as L lifted his head to stare disbelievingly at him, raven hair falling around his face, eyes impossibly round. The insomniac looked so startled, Light let his muddy fist slam into the ground in sheer amusement.

"You—" L started, stammering like a complete fool, "you just threw dirt at me!"

Light, who was currently having a hard time breathing, struggled to find his voice.

"So?" He cackled, "does that raise my percentages of being Kira?"

For a couple of seconds, L just stared and Light wondered if he had fallen into shock. He looked as if his eyes were about to pop out of his skull.

Then, the detective's lip jumped unexpectedly and suddenly, a strange, somewhat hollow sound spilled from his throat.

"..."

Light thought he was going to faint.

L was laughing?

By God (read Light Yagami), L _effing_ Lawliet was laughing!

_Laughing?!_

His surprised state was probably the reason why his reflexes were not fast enough to prevent the ball of mud from colliding with his face.

* * *

**A/N:** So, I am sorry there hasn't been any real progress yet, but I wanted to buit some bars around this plot and storyline before I started. Maybe you're wondering what kind of dream that was? Well, I'm not telling you yet, but I there will be an explanation to that was well! As you can see, their relationship is slowly, but surely changing. This will NOT be a fic where they get all lovey-dovey with each other, cause I do not see them that way.  
For those of you who wished for that, I am sorry.  
Also, I must remind you that I do NOT like Near, or Nate River-whatever. (The reason is probably totally irrational and therefore, I shall not even mention it)  
!! Although, that does not mean I will bash him in this story, cause I know others like the guy. I might even include him (I'll not say how though!)!

For the record, I have been ill for a while and still is, so the updates might be a little bit slower than I would have liked them to, but I will NEVER abandon this! Thank you for reading, and please don't be afraid to review!

Love,  
Naro


	6. Chapter 6

**Warnings:** Slash, cursing.

**Disclaimer:** Not mine!

**A/N:** This is kind of a filler chapter, but I think it is important for the story none the less. L and Light needs to get closer to each other someway and therefore, I'm putting them through all of this!

Please enjoy!

**mornir-brightflame** doesn't think I'm scary, but I'll still say; **Do not be afraid of reviewing!!** (Haha, well, there's always room to try, right?)

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Six_

_"Wrong"_

-

"Stop it!" He was cut off by his own laugh, "L stop!" He ducked, as another ball of mud came flying at him, passing his ear inly by inches.

L, grinning widely, but with a determined look on his features, shook his head rapidly and gathered another projectile.  
Light, fully aware of the detective's throwing skills, leaped to the ground and started to pick up more mud.

He was not going to stand there while a sugar-addicted insomniac kept throwing dirt in his face.  
L was so not going to win this.

Feeling how a rush of adrenaline ran through him, he gritted his teeth and swore victory. He was, however, hit in the shoulder before he managed to collect his own ammo, and falling back a little, he gasped and tried to find his voice again.

"L! Surrender!" He roared, as his amusement only grew.

The raven haired insomniac bent down again.

"Never!" He cried, the left half of his face covered in dark, slowly sliding mud.

"I will never succomb to your will, Kira!"

Light was so surprised that he forgot to aim when he threw his ball. L was making jokes about Kira now?

That was something new entirely.

The L Light knew would never make jokes about something as important as the Kira case, besides, his pride an infamous stubbornness would be enough to keep him from doing so even if someone threatened him with a gun.  
L never let go of his believes, and he most certainly did not joke about criminality. In L's eyes, Kira was a foul murderer whom he hated with a passion, so why would he suddenly act as if none of that mattered anymore?

"Aw, come on! Gimme a break Ryuuzaki!"

L just waved him off and flung another slimy ball at him.

"You should know by now," he panted, sounding somewhat exhausted, "that Justice never sleeps!"

And with that he attacked again and in a matter of seconds, Light found himself slipping on the wet ground and suddenly, he was lying on his back. The air was brutally knocked out of him and it felt as if his brain was being rattled thoroughly.

Great, L had just beaten him in a mud-fight.

He not been lying there for more than a couple of seconds, before a shadow was looming over him. Breathing harshly, he tried to sit up and almost expected L to kick him while he was down or something, but nothing happened.

At least not something painful.

"Are you all right Yagami-kun?" Came the detective's concerned voice.

Wait, what?

_Concerned? _

No, L wasn't concerned. Probably just tired after their fight.

He shrugged it off and nodded, feeling how his hair stuck to his face. Closing his eyes, he lifted his head towards the sky and let the cool rain drum on his cheeks. He wondered if it was going to stop soon, but when he cracked an eye open and peeked at the sky, it was as unforgiving and dark as ever.  
A pale hand was extended to him, and somewhat surprised, Light took it and dragged himself to his feet.  
Once he was securely standing, he glanced over at L whom was now standing a couple of feet away, thumb in his mouth and a thoughtful look grazing his features.  
Light knew that look, and surprisingly he did not feel the slightest irritated by it. L used to wear that exact look every time he tried to force some information out of Light.

In other words, when he wanted a confession.

The detective was all covered in mud and his earlier white sweater was now mostly brown. His skin was dripping wet and black tresses pointed wildly towards the sky.

He looked as if he had just walked through a war-zone and Light had to suppress a laugh.

That was all it took for him to frown, and feeling as if someone had kicked him in the belly, he realized just what he had been doing only moments ago.

He had been occupied playing in the dirt with his worst enemy.

He'd had fun with L.

L and him had been having a good time together! Light actually felt a bit sick at the thought.

This was the man that had indirectly caused his downfall and the one responsible for years of suffering. L had been nothing but a pain in the ass while he was still alive and, the brunet thought with a small scowl, he had not changed.

So why was it that he felt so damn content at the moment?

Fooling around with his arch enemy, throwing mud-balls and making bad jokes was not supposed to be fun! He was supposed to dislike L, hate him even, and it made absolutely no sense that the two of them would actually enjoy each other's company!

The worst in all of it was the fact that Light was feeling so damn carefree.

He felt as if a great burden had been taken away from him and for the first time in a very long time, seven years to be exact, Light felt as if he could lay his guard down.  
Not that he wasn't keeping an eye on the detective, no, he most certainly was.  
This was L, and the sneaky little bastard could always try something. The guy always seemed to have some kind of ace up his sleeve.

However, despite his lingering weariness, the genius found himself relaxing around the insomniac in a way he had never done before.

When they were working together on the Kira case, he had constantly been aware of L's every move and his mind had never rested. He had not even gotten the time to get to know the detective properly, seeing as he would over-analyze everything the man said, and he had never expected him to be honest.

Therefore his knowledge about who L really was could be described as rather poor, and since he assumed that a big part of his usual behavior was an act, he still considered L as quite the mystery. In fact, the only thing Light really knew about L was that he could not go a day without sugar and that he had all these weird habits, which he forced upon everyone else.  
Except for that, Light had no idea of what had been true about his character.

L harbored a brilliant mind, and he was a great liar. He could probably fool about anyone to believe that they had figured him out, while the truth was that he had been acting all the time.  
With a hint of amusement, Light imagined that L was actually capable of walking completely normal, and that he only sat and moved the way he did to make a fake alias more trustworthy.  
That was highly unlikely however, seeing as he had to be an incredible talented actor to pull off something like that.

However, he reminded himself with a faint smirk, this was L.

He swallowed and felt the dryness in his mouth. Suddenly he came to think about the fact that during the entire time they had spent in this place, he hadn't felt hungry or thirsty at all. He still didn't and considering the amount of hours they had strained themselves in the forest, they should both have been starving by now.

L had not mentioned anything about food yet either.

_Sweets_, he corrected himself. If L was hungry, he would not ask for food, but sugar.

Sugar was to him like the Death Note had been to Light.

Even though Light hated to compare something so stupid as eating sweets to ridding the world of evil. Well, in any case, it was an unhealthy addiction, and whether L liked it or not, too much cholesterol could be fatal. He chuckled slightly as he remembered how cranky L used to become when he did not get his candy. He would be so goddamn sour—

Suddenly he choked on his laugh as something hit him like a bullet to the chest. In a flash, he realized just what he was doing.

He was laughing because of L. Not _at_ L, but because of him!

Light had not been aware of that until now, and looking over at the detective, he felt how his insides curled as he understood fully what he had engaged himself in.

Suddenly he felt like copying the sky.

This was not supposed to be happening! He was not supposed to be enjoying spending time with L!  
This was wrong!

He did not want this! What he wanted was to rage against L. To hit him, kick him, spit at him. Kill him even.

He wanted L to suffer like he had done!

All those years in vain. He would give them to him, punish him for them.

His late childhood had been stolen away from him by this particular man. His dreams, his visions. L had been the one to crush them into little pieces, the one who sabotaged it all. Damned be him and his accomplishes.  
Damned be fucking Nate River!

How the hell could Light even be thinking of having a nice time with L, when it was him who had sent him to this forlorn place.

I was all his fault dammit!

Had it not been for the invisible chain that collected them, Light would have ran away at that moment, and as tears started to form in his eyes, he turned around violently, only to elicit a curious little hum from L.

"What is it Light?" He cringed at the mention of his name. Why couldn't L just stick with Yagami-kun?

It was much better! Less personal. When L used his name like that, something happened inside him. Something that only fed the content feeling that was now suffocating him.

He did not answer. Couldn't.

What was he supposed to say? That he regretted their mud-fight and that he wanted L to stay the hell away from him? That he thought he was disgusting, annoying and foolish. That he hated him? Because he definitely did! He wanted the bastard to know it too, but for some idiotic reason he was unable to figure out, he could not bring himself to say so.

"Light?" It was nothing but a soft murmur, but Light felt as if the sound made the ground stir beneath him. Without thinking, he whirled around, hazel eyes penetrating onyx ones, burning with an intensity that seemed to start even the great L.

"Do not call me that Ryuuzaki!" He bellowed, every word oozing with anger, "In fact, do not talk to me at all! I don't want to speak with you and I don't care about your concern! I believe it's fake and it makes me sick!"

The spidery insomniac raised his brows, but did not interrupt him. The look made Light even more furious. "You're dead L! Dead, and always will be. It doesn't matter if you're here and I can see, touch or smell you! I'm dead too and it'd be damned if I had to spend the rest of eternity with you! Hell would be a lot better!"

Where this sudden outburst had come from, he did not know, but when he screamed those things at L, something was released inside of him and he could not stop.

"I," he pointed at himself, "do not want to be here with you!"

God, that was so true! He'd rather spend time with Misa! And that most certainly said a lot! His face was reddening now, and the veins on his forehead was beginning to bulge. He was beyond anger.

Why the hell was he here and who the fuck was responsible?!

This was probably the worst happening ever! World wars and slavery included! He felt like banging his head against a wall. This was so extremely fucked up! Not only was he stranded with L in the middle of the afterlife's nowhere, but he was chained to the nuisance!

"Well," L retorted, interrupting his mental rant, "I do not feel extremely pleasured spending time with you either." His voice was cold as ice and the words literally dripped with poison. "Let me assure you, _Kira_," he drew a deep breath, "if one of us loathes this, it's _me_."

The words stung far worse than Light could ever have imagined.

* * *

**A/N:** So I haven't updated in a while, but I hope that's all right. I had kinda fun writing this, but it is a bit short and I would have liked it to be longer. However, I figured I'd post it now and I hope you like it despite the lack of action! I swear to you, there will be yaoi and the plot will- Yeah... I've said it before and I still stick to it! I hope you'll stay around and that I manage to keep your attentions!


	7. Chapter 7

**Warnings:** Slash... uhm... terrible moodswings?

**Disclaimer:** Not mine! Bwah, like you guys don't know that!

**A/N:** :Hides behind the couch: I'm terribly sorry for taking this long! :Peers around: I have been going through my finals lately, and they are soon over! Therefore, I was able to update now, after writing about five minutes every night since th beginning of May! I wish I could provide you with an awesome chapter full of action, but this one has been quite the hazzle, so I'm sorry to say that this chapter is not something I am too proud of.

...However, I have a lot of things planned now! The ideas are popping up like fireworks and thanks to **Mistltoe**, I now have a fully developed plot in my head! This chapter is therefore dedicated to you darling! (Even if it's not my best) I also want to ensure you guys that the next one will be one hell of a show, and let me just tell you that you are definitely going to see more of-

-haha, I'm not telling! But I promise, it's kinda cool! :grins:

Now, back to the story! Please enjoy the seventh chapter of _Game Over_!

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Seven_

_"A Familiar Face"_

-

_"Well," L retorted, interrupting his mental rant, "I do not feel extremely pleasured spending time with you either." His voice was cold as ice and the words literally dripped with poison. "Let me assure you, Kira," he drew a deep breath, "if one of us loathes this, it's me."_

_The words stung far worse than Light could ever have imagined._

For some weird reason, the previous mass murderer felt every single syllable as a needle, piercing through his now rapidly pounding heart and with a small gasp, he stepped back from the detective standing before him. His brows knitted and without realizing what he was doing, he brought a hand to his chest and squeezed it in a tight fist.

Growling deeply in his throat, the hazel eyed male gritted his teeth and narrowed his gaze dangerously.

Why did those words affect him so much? He had always known that the detective disliked him, and even though L had never really confirmed this, he knew it was true. L hated Kira and everything he stood for and Light was always his primary suspect. These facts spoke for themselves, and the countless times L had accused Light of being Kira only strengthened this assumption. The detective had been against him from the very beginning, and he'd wanted Light to go down, with or without evidence. Light knew this and it really should not matter to him, seeing he felt exactly the same way about the detective.

He loathed the man as much as L hated him, so what the fuck was causing this strange, dull ache in his chest?

Why would a couple of heated words from the man he considered his arch enemy cause such an unpleasant reaction and why should he even care what L meant?Light hated L with a passion, so the bastard's words and opinions should not matter at all!

He crossed his arms over his chest and peered over at said bastard.

L eyed him with a icy stare and Light could literally see the poison swirling in those big, onyx eyes. His lips were twisted in a small sneer, reminding Light of an animal defending itself.

Light almost laughed at the sight, but it was a scornful and harsh kind of amusement he felt, one filled with hatred and rage. L was really pathetic.

In disgust, he let his eyes roam over the hunched figure and felt his anger rise with every second. Everything about the man made him sick. Everything from his pale, smooth features, to his hunched back and soulless eyes. He had learned to loathe those features, and Light knew without a doubt that there was not a single person in the universe he hated more than L.

Not even Near.

The thought of his other nemesis made him curse inwardly.

Why the fuck did he have to think about that crippled brat right now? As if one stone faced fucker wasn't enough! Damned be both of them and their ability to turn their features into unreadable slates of ice.

Though, regarding L now, he was all but calm and his expression was darker than Light could ever recall to have seen it. He was pissed, no doubt about that, and the auburn haired male was sure he had only seen him this upset a few other times.

The first time he had seen L show any kind of emotion was when the investigation team watched the video from the second Kira, which stated that Shinigami existed.

Light had been greatly surprised then, seeing as he had never imagined Ryuuzaki as the type to fall out of his chair in shock and he remembered that for a swift moment he had actually wondered if the insomniac was suffering from a heart attack. L's whole body had gone rigid and a strange, choked sound had escaped him just before his arms shot up and he fell to the floor.

Unfortunately, his actions were not forced by an upcoming heart attack, simply a reaction to the message from Misa. Despite his disappointment, Light had been highly surprised and he'd found it very intriguing that L had lost his cool like that over the mere mention of Shinigami. It could, of course, have been an act, but Light found that highly unlikely, seeing as he doubted the detective would chose to react that way, had he been able to control his actions.

But, one never knew with L. He was capable of quite the amount of things and a brilliant actor, so Light would not throw away the possibility.

However, Light thought, to someone as well-minded as L, whom always relied on his logic, the thought of such things as Death Gods would cause great upheaval. L would never accept the thought of something so illogical. Light assumed that the sole idea of immortality and other realms was as incomprehensible to the detective as a life without cake.

Remembering L's nasty sugar addiction, Light grimaced thoroughly and a small huff escaped him.

He was not going to let L's words affect him. This idiotic, weak excuse of a man was not going to get under his skin. Ever.

God, and by that him, would never allow it. Feeling his temper rise, he raked a hand through his tousled, dirty hair, and turned away from the detective.

"Well," he began, voice cold and emotionless, "I don't care if you hate me Ryuga. In fact," he paused a little and let his gaze travel towards the clouded sky, "I find the thought quite pleasing."

L didn't reply, but Light knew he was probably seething with rage right now. He eyed the heavy clouds, wondering briefly if it was going to rain again and as he tried to think of a possible shelter, he was reminded of the invisible cuffs that seemed to link him to L. His heart rhythm sped up again and he almost lost his forced composure once more.

_Damn! _

Why did he have to be chained to L? He felt like crying and the idea of being with the insomniac till the end of times made his insides churn painfully and his head spin, to the brink where he thought he was going to pass out from irritation. He probably would have done so too, hadn't it been for the fact that L was still watching him and he did not want to give him the satisfaction.

"_Why would I feel satisfied by knowing who shot you? I was merely curious, Light-kun."_

He was trembling with anger now. This was so wrong! So goddamn wrong! What had he ever done to deserve a fate this gruesome?

_Been Kira perhaps? _A voice suspiciously similar to L's, suggested in his mind.

_Shut the hell up! _

God, he was going crazy out here! L was in his head as well! What kind of mess had he managed to entangle himself in? And why weren't there any therapists in the effing afterlife?!

_Argh! _

"Light-kun is a terrible liar." Came L's quiet reply and Light felt himself jump at the detective's words. Terrible liar? Him?

_Says the one who was fooled to his death by said _terrible_ liar!_

The damn detective was so damn dense sometimes! He was supposed to be a genius for God's sake! How could he possibly think that he had anything to say in the matter?

Couldn't he just understand that he was in no position to speak his mind? His opinions weren't important any longer, and nobody gave a damn about his thoughts or ideas! He was no longer in charge of anything! Kira had turned those tables a long time ago, and now Light Yagami was the one pulling the strings! L, on his side, had been reduced to something small, powerless and utterly pathetic.

He was nothing! Nothing compared to God!

He refused to turn and face the black eyed nuisance, so he stubbornly kept his eyes occupied with glaring at the sky. The rolling, stormy clouds traveled noticeably fast over the wide, gray panorama, like a herd of wolfs, searching for their prey. Starving, bloodthirsty predators, hunting for flesh.

He gritted his teeth.

Speaking of that damned detective. He was not even going to give L an answer. The bastard didn't deserve one! Maybe, he though with a scowl, if he just ignored the insomniac, he would go away. That was most unlikely though. Knowing L, he would use every chance he got to torment Light!

What kind of weather was this anyway? Only hours ago it had been brilliant, while now a storm was coming up?

This place was just as deceiving as L himself!

"So you think I'm a terrible liar Ryuuzaki?" He spat venomously. "That seems about right, coming from the one who called himself my friend!"

L raised his brows and his eyes grew, if possible, wider. "What?"

"Oh, don't even try to play dumb with me! All you ever wanted was to prove that I was Kira!" He tightened his already clenched fists. "You never thought of me as a companion L! You lied! Just like you're accusing me of doing now, so don't act like you're a goddamn saint!" He was fuming now, and the words kept streaming from his mouth, "you kept telling me that I was your first friend, the only person on your level, and yet you constantly tried to get me to confess that I was Kira!"

"Well I was _right_, wasn't I?" The spidery detective had raised his voice now, and beneath the smooth emphasis, Light thought he could make out a small tinge of... something. Something he could only recall to have heard there once before; in the stairwell, after the rainstorm. L had seemed sad then, pained even, and for the first time, Light had thought he saw beneath the porcelain mask, only for a swift moment. Somehow, those darkened orbs had seemed heavier that day, and his face had held emotions Light had never thought someone like L could harbor. He had seemed more human then, more real.

He scowled and threw the memory away. This was not the time to take a drive down memory lane!

"That's hardly the point, _L_," he hissed, flinging his wet hair out of his eyes, "even if you were right about me being Kira, you could not be certain at that point during the investigation! You wanted me guilty!" He pierced the insomniac with an intense, scolding glare, "and that's hardly something a friend would want, is it?"

There was a pause, and the two of them just stared at each other. Neither of them batting as much as an eyelash.

Then, L lowered his head slightly, and his lips moved almost invisibly. "No..."

Light felt his heart jump despite himself. "What?"

The detective's gaze dropped a little, but his eyes soon found Light's again. He regarded him for a couple of seconds before a soft sigh escaped him. "It's not something a friend would do Light-kun..." He bit his lip and fell deep in thoughts for a moment, then his eyes narrowed and he stubbornly stuck his chin out. "But, it's what L would do to Kira."

Light felt his anger flare once again, and his earlier state of awareness disappeared with the wind. "Oh, fuck off, Ryuuzaki! You're never gonna stop are you? You're always gonna avoid the subjects you don't feel comfortable with, just like always. You're a coward L! A coward!"

L was about to open his mouth and retort, but before his words fell, an all too familiar laughter was heard from above them. Light's eyes shot open and he flipped his neck backwards so fast, he was surprised it did not snap.

His breathing stopped.

There, against the swirling, untamed sky, Light saw a familiar, lanky silhouette hovering over them. Even through the dim light, the hazel eyed male saw the lopsided, wicked grin he knew so well.

The sight made his stomach twist and for a moment the serial killer thought he was about to throw up.

And he thought things couldn't get worse?

He'd been wrong.

Undeniably.

"So..." The figure spoke hoarsely and shivers traveled down the brunet's spine. "We meet again Light-Yagami."

* * *

**A/N:** There... :wipes forehead: Now, FINALLY that's over! And the fun can begin! After I have finished updating The Solitude of Heart and posted my KH-longshot I shall give my full attention to this baby and trust me, it'll be FANTABULOUS! :grins:

Oh... and please point out errors and mistakes!


	8. Chapter 8

**Warnings:** Slash

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Death Note... and I am glad I don't, cause then everyone would have gotten to know about my love for male-action. Which would have been kind of embarrasing, even if I, myself couldn't care less.

**A/N:** Okay! So, I know it has been a long time, but here I am with a chapter more than twice as long as the previous ones! So hey! Gimme some credit! :Giggles:  
Anyway... I am leaving for vacation the next week and I'll be away for fourteen days. However, I think I will be able to update before that, but if not, then please understand.  
This chapter was a nuisance, and even though I love Ryuk, I find him more than challenging to write. He is very complex I believe.

Now, we are still mostly concentration upon Light and his feelings. I believe they are important in this. However, I will tell you... spoil to you, that the next chapter is going to hold some... cute scenes. Lol. You take that however you want to!

Thank you for reading! And please... don't feel afraid to review! You can tell me anything! Abolutely anything!

**

* * *

**

Game Over

Chapter Eight

_"Death"_

-

Light felt how chills started to roll down his spine. That voice was probably the last thing he had ever wanted to hear in this pathetic excuse of an afterlife. That including L's!

If L was soiling this place with his presence, _Ryuk_ was doing it even more so. Just his appearance was grim enough to shadow the beauty of this newfound treasure that happened to be his afterlife!

What the hell was he doing here? And how did he get to this place? Was it even possible for a Shinigami to follow humans into their death?

Normally, he would have thought the answer was no, but now however, he did not have a clue of what to think. According to the rules in the Death Note, he wasn't supposed to be here either. Wherever here was... He was supposed to go to Muu, Nothingness, after his death, but instead he was here in this vibrant, deserted forest beneath a bright, blue sky. Even a five year old would see the illogic.

As he gazed into the grim face of his previous partner -hell what was he even thinking? Ryuk had never been his partner, just a damned nuisance following him around!- he was overcome by the need to throw something at someone. Having him here, so close, after what he had just done, after he'd betrayed him, made the hazel eyed man so damned angry...

_Fuck!_

Ryuk seemed to notice his inner turmoil, and judging by the growing smile on his face, he was rather enjoying it as well. Still hovering above them in the air, the Death God wondered if Light Yagami would ever change. His attitude seemed exactly the same now, as when he was alive. Even the scowl was in place.

_Hyuk Hyuk, he's just the same as he always was._

"Is this your doing?" Light snarled, pulling him out of his thoughts. The reaper blinked a few times, and the almost innocent gesture made the young man growl angrily.

Hands balling into fists, he bit his tongue in anooyance. Whatever the Death God was doing here, he would get him to confess the reason behind his presence, no matter what! He was not going to allow the Shinigami to play games with him anymore, and now he had nothing to lose. He could say and do whatever he wanted!

At his outburst, Ryuk gave a small, raw chuckle. A sound that caused Light grit his teeth until he heard them crunch.

"My doing?" He shook his head faintly before seizing Light with an intense stare. "Light," he drawled in his usual raspy voice, "didn't I tell you that Shinigami can't control the afterlife?"

His grin widened, revealing another couple of inches with pearly white, razor-sharp fangs. The sight made Light's stomach churn. He'd always hated that smile. It reminded him of a shark ready for attack. The only thing missing was the ugly eye rolling.

"I was just as surprised as you, when I found out you were here." He use one of his bony arms to gesture towards the surroundings. "According to the Note, your death should have taken you to nothing but emptiness, remember?"

"Wait a minute," Light narrowed his eyes, "what do you mean by 'when you found I was here'?" He took a step towards the Shinigami, "how exactly did you find out? And where the heck is here anyway?" He did not expect the bastard to give him a decent answer, but he felt like he had to ask nonetheless. He had to figure out as much as possible regarding this place and it's purpose.

Like predicted, Ryuk just grinned wider. "Keep your patience up Light. Everything will be revealed when it's time."

L had yet to speak, and when Light spared him a glance, he noticed that the detective was staring at Ryuk, a thoughtful expression grazing his features. His nemesis seemed far away, and yet, Light new that beneath that blank stare, a brilliant mind was working like an engine during high-speed. Surely, L was trying to make something of this situation, and Light actually found himself curious of what the insomniac was thinking. Maybe L had noticed something he hadn't?

Ryuk, the betrayer, as Light had decided to name him, saw his look and turned his ragged head in L's direction.

When the insomniac seized his gaze, and gleaming, yellow globes met misty, black ones, an odd spark was lit within the Death God's eyes. Light saw his features change slightly, and the ever present grin took a somewhat different form. As he regarded the detective, his face turned creepier than Light had ever seen it, and with a small shiver, he was reminded of a cat who'd just eaten a big, tasty rat. Subconsciously, he took a step closer to L, and he noticed that his movements caused the Shinigami to trail him from the corner if his eyes.

A hoarse little laugh escaped the reaper. "So it is true."

Light snapped. "What is?!"

Ryuk apparently decided to ignore him, and without as much as a glance, he turned to L. He stared at the detective for a couple of seconds before he opened his mouth with a small chuckle.

"Our paths crosses once more Lawliet."

To his enormous surprise, Light noticed that L looked as unaffected as ever. His eyes showed no emotion at all, his white porcelain mask never slipping. He simply regarded the Death God, not batting as much as a lash. The only thing that gave him away was the fact that he was slightly more hunched than usual. Whenever presented with a situation he did not feel comfortable with, L tended to crane his neck even more, making his already crooked back appear even more so. This was something Light had seen several times during the Kira investigation, so when it occurred now, he was able to see it at once. During the period when they were handcuffed together, Light had learned almost all there was to know about L's many quirks and habits, this being one of them.

However, he did not think Ryuk noticed, since he wasn't as used to being around the detective as he was.

Light could not bring himself to speak. Instead, he just watched L, absentmindedly searching for signs that could tell him anything about what the detective was currently feeling.

L, however, gave him no clues, as he simple stood there, hands in his pockets as if the Death God's appearance did nothing but bore him. "I was wondering how you would look," the Shinigami mused. Then, amusement flashed in his eyes, "I see you haven't really changed at all."

"No," L replied, voice smooth like velvet, "it would appear that I look exactly the same now, as I did when I was alive." He regarded the reaper silently for a couple of seconds, before opening his mouth once more. "Unlike you, Shinigami."

Ryuk's grin widened, and at this point, it was impossible to describe how scary he looked. "So you noticed." His tone almost seemed impressed. "Even with a mind like yours, that's not given."

Light was confused, and it annoyed him that he didn't know what they were talking about. "What?" He barked, "noticed what?"

L's upper lip curled a little and he turned to Light, his hair fluttering around his cheekbones. "Take a look at him Light-kun. Do you think he looks the same as he did when he accompanied you in the human realm?" L's voice was calm, but his eyes shone at Light with an inner fire, as if he was trying to get some sort of message across. Light furrowed his brows. "What?"

The insomniac tightened his jaws, and at his side, Ryuk chuckled. "Look at the Shinigami, Light-kun."

Still frowning, Light did as he was told -even though he hated to take orders from L- and shifted his gaze to the Death God.

They stared at each other.

Light didn't get it. To him, Ryuk looked precisely the same now, as he'd done when they first met. His stare intensified. What was he supposed to look for? Ryuk did nothing to prevent his eyes from roaming over his body, in fact, he seemed to enjoy this little game, the only thing moving about him being is lips tugging further upwards. Light felt lost. Apparently L wanted him to see something. L had noticed something he had not. What in hell could it be?

His eyes narrowed. Then, he saw it. There, in the Death God's face, just above his right eye, a small, almost invisible scar stretched across pale blue skin. However, that was not what drew the most attention. Once he had seen that, he also saw something far more intriguing. Something he did not fully understand.

"Your eye..." he breathed, brows furrowing at the sight. "There's something different about your eye."

And true. There was indeed a difference. How could he not have noticed? The Shinigami's right eye was somewhat clouded, not nearly as bright as the other one, and the red pupil seemed darker, more brownish. It was in fact rather obvious. How could he have missed it?

Ryuk nodded affirmatively. "Yes."

"What is it?" Light asked, still not sure of what to make of these news.

When Ryuk did not answer right away, but kept quiet, a grim look of amusement lingering on his features, L stepped forward, hands still in his pockets. "He's blind Light-kun."

Light's head snapped up. "What?"

L gave a small nod, and beside him, Light heard Ryuk snicker. "His right eye is blind." The detective paused a little before pointing at the Death God's right eye. "As you can see, his eye is covered by this almost see through membrane. And even if it moves along with the other one, it's not really trailing anything. It's dead."

Light felt like gaping. "Ryuk?" he demanded, voice a little too soft for his own liking, "is this the truth? You're blind?"

Ryuk chuckled. "Only partly, Light."

"But... how did that happen?" The young man was stunned. Could Shinigami even suffer from blindness?

"That's not your business." The Death God's tone was teasing, but firm. "Maybe I'll tell you sometime. If I feel like it."

Light scowled. "Fine. It's not like I care anyway." However, that was a lie. He was in fact really curious about this, and he made a mental note that said he was going to figure it out some day.

"Well, Light." The Death God drawled after a couple of seconds in silence, "I was rather hoping we'd meet again." He gave a cough, "you see, life in the human realm was much more fun when you were around. After you so carelessly revealed yourself as Kira," he grinned like a maniac, clearly enjoying the vibrant blush that crept to Light's cheeks. "I lingered for a while... In the human world that is." He sighed. "I even dropped my notebook again to see what would happen."

At this, L's body went rigid and his head snapped up, ebony eyes locking with the Shinigami's. "You dropped the Death Note again?!"

He sounded shocked and angered.

Ryuk just huffed. "Yeah..." he used a lanky hand to scratch his solid chin, "I did, but it was no fun." Heaving another sigh, the Death God lowered himself in the air, so that his feet were touching the grass covered hill. "The man who picked it up was a sheer idiot compared to Light. He used it to punish his cheating wife. Didn't take that kid long to seek him out and hand him the death penalty."

Light's squinted towards the Death God. "Who, Near?!" He spat, lips twisting in a predatory sneer. He was about to give both Ryuk and L a little speech concerning his feelings towards Nate River, but before he got as far, he the Death God's words fully seeped in and he was left rather speechless.

"But Ryuk..." he managed to mouth after a short second of silence, lowering his voice for the first time since Ryuk's appearance. "It's only been a day or so since..." he refused to say it, "How did all that manage to happen in such a short period of time?"

The Death God's eyes lit up, sending jolts of electricity through Light's body. It was as if the clouds darkened, and suddenly, a chill that seemed to pool from somewhere inside of him made goosebumps appear on his skin.

"Light..." the reaper started, moving closer to the young man, "don't you, with your brilliant mind and all, realize that time doesn't work the same way in life as in the afterlife?" He sounded amused, as if he found it extremely weird that Light hadn't figured this out by himself. "You really thought I would come after only a day?"

"How many years?" He asked, voice trembling slightly. "How many years have I been dead?"

Ryuk noticed his unease. "Now now Light, what does it matter? You're dead... shouldn't be much more to worry about."

Light felt sick. Balling his fists, he stepped closer to the Shinigami. "No, Ryuk, don't even start with me. Just answer the question!" He gritted his teeth, "now!"

"Still harboring that infamous persistence I see..." He snorted. "What makes you think that I am going to spill everything to you?"

"The fact that you fucking came here!" The hazel eyed man was seething now, and with a speed that seemed to surprise even the Death God, he rushed forward and pushed Ryuk in the chest. The reaper's skin felt weird against his palms. Cold, as if wasn't really skin at all. However, he did not pay much attention to it, as he was far more concerned about the current situation.

Yet, the odd sensation lingered in the back of his mind and would do so for a long time.

"Tell me!" he screeched as Ryuk took a step back, that ugly grin still plastered on his face. "Tell me how long I have been dead, you damn bastard!" He was shaking now, and to his immense annoyance, tears were forming in his eyes. Damn! He was not supposed to cry over this! Not in front of Ryuk! And most certainly _not_ in front of L.

"Ten years."

Light blinked.

"What?" His voice came out nothing but a hoarse whisper.

"Ten years." Ryuk sounded bored.

Light couldn't believe it. He had been dead for ten years? Ten fucking years?

His breath caught in his throat and his heart seemed to cool down in his veins, as if pure ice had been poured into them. He couldn't keep his eyes from traveling to L, and with a little snort, he noticed that the detective was wiggling his toes in the grass, biting his thumbnail as if he didn't even care. Gross. That habit was so disgusting. Hadn't he just used his hands to ravish the dirt?

Gross indeed. Better not pay attention to him.

He turned to the Death God. "Ten years?" he repeated, feeling how the words fell to the ground like heavy stones.

"Yes. Ten years, using human years."

"Oh..."

Of course, 'oh' was not nearly everything that went trough his mind at that point, but it was all he managed to get out. He felt drained of energy, as if a switch had been turned off inside of him, shutting off his power.

Ten years...

That was a long time. A very long time. So much could happed in ten years! Had he lived for those ten years, who knew where he would have been now? He could have gotten married, had children, another education... He swallowed.

Ten years...

Above them, the sky had taken a softer color and the parting clouds had gained an orange lining, symbolizing night was on it's way. Light was a bit taken aback by this, seeing as he was reminded of the fact that they had only been in this place for a day or so, while on earth, he had been dead for _ten_ years. Dead. He was dead.

It was too surreal, too far away and too big to imagine. He couldn't even swallow pieces of it, and he doubted L could either.

He frowned.

_L._

L was with him in this. A stranger, more ironic thought was not imaginable. Out of all the people fate could have picked, it had chosen L to stay with him in the afterlife. L! His goddamn nemesis! There were many things Light wanted to understand, many things he needed to know, but this, the fact that he was here with L, was the one thing that bothered him the most. He'd been asking himself why probably over a hundred times, but not once had he even gotten close to an answer. It simply wasn't understandable.

Suddenly, he came to think of Ryuks words when he's seen L earlier.

"_So it's true..."_

The young mass-murderer bit his lip.

"_So it's true..."_

What the hell was that supposed to mean? He'd demanded to know, but the reaper had ignored his question. Typical Ryuk. Whether he had done so to be mean, or simply because he did not know pick up Light's question, he wasn't sure, but one thing he knew, was that if it was up to Ryuk, he'd never tell Light anything just to be nice. No, quite contrary, he would amuse himself by keeping silent, taking pleasure in Light's confusion.

He scowled.

That damned Death God. The traitor!

He was never going to trust that bastard ever again. He'd done so once. With the most precious thing he had. His life. He had cried, begged, screamed for help. For anything that could get him out of that horrible situation.

Obviously, his prayers had not been answered.

He died that day. Alone and wounded, with no one but a bunch of his enemies around him. Enemies that had once seen him as their friend. Their companion through seven years.

Fools.

He had never thought of any of them as something equal to friends, never had he enjoyed their company. Ever. No one in the investigation team beside his father had ever prevented him with a nice time or a good memory. No one was even worthy of remembrance. No one except—

_Enough!_

He mentally slapped himself.

Enough of those thoughts! He had hated every single one of them! With a passion! Period.

_Ten years... _

That brat was his age now. No, now is not a good time to think about Nate River.

Fuck him!

Blocking out the pair of grayish, gloomy eyes that pierced his mind at the thought of the kid, his thought drifted further and he thought about his family. His mother and Sayu. He didn't even manage to think about his father. That memory was still a little too painful, even if he still thought he had done the only thing possible by letting him die.

Instead he thought about It didn't really hurt him to think about them and he was not consumed by guilt or anything of the likes. All he felt was this odd kind of melancholy. Not the kind that tore your insides apart and felt like a stab in the gut, the one that gave you nightmares and made you cry. No, it was the kind that sends one back to a time where the days were longer, brighter and filled with much more laughter and far less sorrow. He wondered if they missed him, if they ever thought of him despite the fact that he was, or had been at least, Kira. Suddenly he was tempted to ask Ryuk about his funeral. Had he even gotten one? And if so, where was his body buried?

It was a weird thought. Somewhere out there, in a completely different dimension, his lifeless shell was buried, far beneath the ground. He shuddered. No, there was no way he'd ask Ryuk about that. The Shinigami would probably just laugh at him. Speaking of the devil. With a sneer, he noticed that Ryuk was watching him with that wicked, wild grin still plastered on his face

"What are you looking at, Ryuk?" He snapped, flicking his hair out his his eyes.

Shaking his large head, the Shinigami lifted his hand and pointed directly at Light's face, a sharp claw reflecting the glimmering sunlight. "They're still talking about you, you know." He grinned. "Those silly humans. Some of them are still worshiping Kira."

"What?" Light felt his heart flutter at the Death Gods's words.

Ryuk tilted his head. "Are you surprised? Well," he chuckled, "it's true. There are still rumors about Kira... Some says he's coming back one day, others that he is still alive, lingering. That he is still protecting them from evil." The Shinigami laughed hoarsely, his nostrils widening slightly. "Apparently, they are unaware of the truth... Or they don't believe it at least."

He shrugged. "Kira has become something akin to a legend."

"And you..." The Death God turned his head towards L and nodded slowly, his spiky head bobbing, "you have also gained quite a lot of fans back there."

L's eyes narrowed underneath his bangs. "Me?" he asked, raising his brows. "How could I possibly have fans in the human world?" he seemed skeptical, as if he believed Ryuk was not telling him the truth. "I died long before Light-kun," Light actually flinched at his words, "and as far as I know, Kira, " a pointed glare was directed at the offended, "was the one to blame for that. If I was outsmarted by him, and he has followers, how could anyone still favor me?

"Well..." Ryuk cleared his throat. "Maybe you have forgotten detective, but you are not the only one who have ever called yourself L."

At his words, L's eyes lit up, and with an almost proud expression, he raised his chin. "Mello and Near."

Ryuk hummed in agreement, "Yes. They continued the battle long after your departure. And as you can see..." he gestured towards Light, "they succeeded. That's why they still believe in you back there. Some even think of you as the world's savior. L, the great detective. Kira's opposite."

As he listened to the Death God, Light could only stare. What was the Shinigami saying? After all those years, the world still spoke of Kira (well, L too, but he ignored that part)? After ten fucking years?

He felt amazed at the thou—

No! No, he wasn't amazed. Not at all!

Waves of electricity rushed thought his veins.

Of course they remembered him! He was Kira! God!

He was the one who had seen the light! The only one who had ever succeeded in ridding the world of evil. He had been the one to start the cleaning process, the single person who'd found a way out of the stinking, rotten mess the world had become!

Feeling how his whole body gained more energy, he straightened his back. "Of course Ryuk," he replied, voice once again calm and cold as ice, "Kira was the only one who ever gave them something to believe in. the only one who prevented them with hope." His gaze hardened. "Why wouldn't they remember that? Why wouldn't they remember me?"

At his side, L stiffened and when Light turned his head towards him, he noticed that the insomniac's eyes were dark as coal, scolding. He was mad, angry. And Light could not help but to flinch a little at that look. The detective loathed Kira and everything he stood for. He was Kira's complete opposite. His worst enemy.

Well... so?

What the heck did it matter?

Light felt his own eyes burn, and without another glance, he turned away from L. Who the hell cared what he thought?

He felt confident now, at ease. He was still Kira, God of the new world. They hadn't forgotten about him. He was still worshiped still loved.

His thoughts suddenly flickered to Misa and with a frown he recalled the images from the dream. Misa's black, empty eyes, looking right through him, as if he was not really there.

He shivered.

Those eyes... They were like nothing he had ever seen before. Pained, soulless, sick. Not Misa's eyes at all.

She used to be so cheerful, so impulsive. Even though she drove him mad more than half the time, he's somehow admired that in her. Her ability to never lose faith in him. Her optimism.

And although he had often cursed her for being so damn dense, so absentminded, he knew that she's been his most loyal servant.

A servant... That was all she'd been to him. Not a friend. Not a lover. Not from his side anyway.

In awe, he suddenly realized that he felt ashamed.

"Ryuk," he breathed without thinking, "what happened to her?"

Ryuk regarded him for a moment and with a small smirk, Light remembered how he'd used to look that way each time Light presented him to one of his new plans. Back when they had worked together in his younger years. "Who?" The Shinigami asked, clearly puzzled by his sudden question.

"Misa," Light replied. "What happened to her after I..." He still could not say it.

"Oh..." The reapers ever present grin faltered for a moment and for the first time ever, Light thought he saw a small hint of sadness, or something similar to that in those usually leering eyes. "She killed herself."

Light felt the air being sucked out of his lungs. "What?" He couldn't believe it. "She did what?"

Ryuk nodded faintly. "When the investigation ended." He shrugged, regaining his usual bored appearance. "She jumped from a building. Apparently your death and the fact that you were Kira caused her to lose it. Or rather her ability to go on in life."

Light was shocked. Misa had killed herself? Misa was dead? Because of him?

Somehow the idea of it, made his head spin and he couldn't wrap his mind around it. Misa, the vibrant annoying woman he'd known for seven years was gone? In his mind, he could almost hear her voice. The hopeless, squeaky emphasis that used to drive him insane. He heard her laughter. He didn't even have to concentrate. Musical waves of laughter rang in his ears, spilling splatters of colors everywhere.

Then, it died abruptly.

Died.

Just like her.

Like Misa.

She had been in pain. And by the looks of it, much pain as well. So much in fact, that she's decided she was better off dead.

He felt how his knees began to shake all of a sudden, and with a little yelp, he lost balance.

A strong pair of arms prevented him from falling.

* * *

Dundundun!


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **Not mine... NOT MINE! Or... the fic is mine, but nothing else!!

**Warnings: **Late update!! LAAAATE UPDATE! D:

**A/N:** O_O I have nothing to say... Except... I AM SO SORRY! -Dies multiple times- SOOOO SOOOO SORRY!

Here is the new chapter. A year late. And... uh... that's it. Please read and- PLEASE have mercy on my poor soul. I haven't updated in a YEAR, and my writing is rusty, failing and... completely.. new born!  
Yet, I hope you'll make something- ANYTHING out of this. And I PROMISE; I will update a LOT more often.

The reason behind my absence (Which you all probably really don't care about) is that I moved, my computer died (With all my writing) AND I just recently got a new one of my own. Much Love.

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Nine_

"Secrets"

-

If Light had ever felt like everything around him was alien before, those feelings were nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to what he was feeling now.

The moment he realized L's arms were the ones who were around him, that L's scent lingered in the air, that it was L's breath in his hair, his chest against his back and his fucking hands grasping his shirt, the auburn haired mass murderer was sure he had never felt so weirded out in his entire life.

When he actually became aware of the fact that his arch enemy, his nemesis- L fucking Lawliet, was the person who had prevented him- Kira, supposed-to-be God of the world, Light Yagami, from falling on his ass, the young man (now actually ten years older), practically stopped breathing.

Feeling how his heart skipped what seemed like several beats and how his the oxygen didn't seem to fully reach his lungs, Light could only stare rigidly at Ryuk's extremely eerie grin as he wasn't capable of moving a single muscle.

L's touch made him freeze completely. Even his thoughts seemed coated, fogged. As if his brain was somewhat lagging, like a shoe stuck in gum lying on the sidewalk. His mouth felt dry like sand, but he wasn't able to close it, and not before his eyes started watering did he blink, causing a single, salty tear to slither down his cheek.

He could feel L's heart against his back. Alive, not dead, but alive once more. Beating.

_Thump Thump._

_Thump Thump._

Again, the image of the detective's closing eyes came to his mind. He remembered everything about that scene so frighteningly clearly. Even now, seve- no, seventeen years after the actual happening, he still recalled exactly how L had looked when he died. He could still remember every single detail of his features.

The way his lashes fluttered against his pale cheekbones, and the way his mouth fell slightly open as he exhaled for the last time.

He had looked so peaceful. So at ease. But at the same time, there had been sadness in his eyes. Hurt, confusion and pain. Loneliness.

Sadness because he was losing, most likely. L hated to lose. He was just like a little kid when it came to losing, he absolutely resented it, loathed it. Yeah, Light figured, knowing that he'd lost the seemingly never ending battle between himself and Kira, must have stung more than anything could ever do.

Hurt, possibly because Light Yagami, his so called "friend" had proven to be Kira, and because he, himself -dying as he was- would never be able to tell anyone. Confusion, because it had all happened so fast. Pain, partly because of the heart attack, but foremost because he had just lost Watari, his pillar through life.

And loneliness.

Because in the end, everyone dies alone.

Light knew this as well. Because he had died too. Died, and ended up in... whatever this place was. With L.

Whom was currently the only force holding Light up.

The moment seemed to last forever, and not even Ryuk did anything to interrupt the crushing silence that seemed to loom over them. It was as if the entire afterlife was watching them. Like, everything from the high, pointy moutain, to the slowly moving rivers and the deep, overgrown forest was paying attention to the scene that was surrently evolving beneath the yet unsoiled sky. The only sound he heard besides his own ragget breaths, was the eagle Light had seen earlier. From somewhere hidden, it was releasing an occasional hoarse screech towards the slowly setting sun.

The atmosphere was vibrant, shivering. And when a slowly swiveling gust of wind picked up his bangs and lifted them from his eyes, he could see that stars were merging east on the now, deep-blue canvas.

The seconds dragged by.

One.

Two.

Three.

It took almost seven seconds for reality to hit in. And when it hit, it hit hard.

With a frantic, desperate gasp, Light noticed how a strangled sound escaped him and he abruptly lifted his arms and dug his nails into the pale investigator's hands. He wasn't sure if he did so because he wanted L to let go, or because he wanted to hurt him. Hell, he didn't even know if he wanted neither!

All he knew was that L was holding him and that it had to stop! Not only because Ryuk was watching, and judging by the giant smirk on his face, absolutely loved it, but because L was not supposed to... Kira did not _need_ L!

Ever.

The detective seemed to be as shocked as him about the situation, because as soon as he Light felt his own body coming alive again, he also felt the insomniac's hands rapidly let go of his clothing, and he managed to react just fast enough to get his footwork in motion and push himself back up into a standing position before L let go of him.

With a voilent push, he detatched himself completely for the panda-eyed male, spun around and faced him with a scolding sneer.

"Get off of me, Ryuuzaki!"

L, still looking a little strained and flushed just scowled at him and returned the snarl. "With pleasure, Kira!"

Their gazes locked and a battle of glares ensued. They stared blazingly at each other for what seemed like an eternity, neither of them uttering as much as a single syllable, until, a foul, deep laughter interrupted the silence. "Hyuk hyuk hyuk," Ryuk's shoulders jumped in unison with his laughter, "you still haven't stopped doing that, I see."

Both golden brown and onyx eyes shifted and pierced the Death God instead of each other.

"What!?" They replied simultaneously, both pair of eyes shooting daggers in his direction.

The offended just offered a smile in return. A grim, twisted smile which made goosepumbs appear on more than one set of arms.  
"You fought in life, and you fight in death."  
He scratched his cheek with one of his claws, the black nail a sharp contrast to his bone-colored skin. "It's like they say I guess... Some things never change." He waved his finger about a little, as if he was twirling the air around it. "Or.. do they?"

Light couldn't hold back the snort. "Oh, stop being a smart-ass, Ryuk! You know perfectly well that things do change. Just look at this! I thought you said I was going to end up in Mu!" He gestured to the surroundings. "As far as I can tell, _this_ doesn't qualify as nothingness!"

As he said it, he came to think of Ryuk's words, and what he had said about this particular topic.

_"Humans who uses the Death Note, are banned from both Heaven and Hell."_

This, was most definitely not Heaven, considering L was here. Or more appropriate, he thought with a small frown, considering that they were both here. They were on opposites sides of Justice. And God -if such an omnipotent power even existed- could only approve of one of them. Therefore, it was impossible that this place was Hell as well.

So, it wasn't Heaven _or_ Hell.

He remembered that Ryuk had also told him that when people die, they go to Mu. Nothingness. Light had believed him back then, seeing as he didn't find it likely that either of the places actually existed. Nothingness had sounded a lot more plausible to him.

Then again, he thought with knitted brows, it couldn't be Mu either, because nothingness meant... nothing.

The Shinigami seemed to pick up on his train of thoughts. "You're right Light," he exclaimed lazily. "This isn't Nothingness."

"Then what is it?"

The setting sun's reflection got caught within the Shinigami's round orbs, and a predatory grin spread across his face. "It's something else."

Light nearly lost it. "Yes! I understand that for fuck's sake, but WHAT-"

Before he could rant any furter, L (read: The Nuisance) harshly grabbed him by the shoulder and squeezed. He was about to whirl around and punch him, but something about the way the detective was diggin his fingers into his skin stopped him.

"Yagami-kun", he spoke softly, "did it ever occur to you that the Shinigami doesn't answer properly because he doesn't have all the answers?"

Light rolled his eyes immediately. "Sure, Lawliet."

He almost smacked himsef. Again, he had used L's full name without thinking. Originally to mock him, but somehow, that wasn't really the way it came out. Oh well, he wasn't gonna show L his unease.

"Of course there are things even Shinigami doesn't know, but," and his eyes flashed dangerously in Ryuk's direction, "this one has no other hobbies but annoying the shit out of people by speaking in riddles all the time!" His cheeks flushed a vibrant red as he spoke.

"Yeah, that's Ryuk for you! He just loves getting on people's nerves, and that is precisely what he is trying to do now! Of course he knows why we're here! I bet he's even the one responsible for it! He is nothing but a-"

He took a deep breath before continuing, "-scheming, backstabbing _liar_!"

Ryuk didn't seem to care about his words, as he was still smiling broadly, and Light couldn't even say he cared anyways. He was mad at L now.

"Besides, what do you know?" He barked, grabbing ahold of the spidery hand on his shoulder, rapidly turning around to face the insomniac. "You used to speak in riddles all the fucking time when we were working on the Kira case, and not due to your lack of answers, but because you simply wanted to act like an asshole!"

"That is not true!" L hissed between gritted teeth, "I acted the way I did because I suspected you were Kira! I did that only to protect myself and the ones around me!"

"You must mean Watari," Light snapped mercilessly, still clamping the other mans hand vigorously, "cause he last time I checked you didn't care for anyone but him! Well, anyone besides yourself that is."

For a moment L actually looked hurt. "There were others..."

"Who? Your successors?" Light faked a laugh. "Those pathetic orphans?" He smirked mockingly, thrilled by the way the previous investigator flinched at his words. "Don't even _try_, L! You didn't care about them! The only reason you trained them them was to make sure that your beloved name never died with you!"

"You're wrong!" L suddenly yelled. With a powerful yank, he tore himself away from Light, causing the auburn haired male to stumble forward and almost crash in L's now rejecting backside. The detective was standing with his hands in his pockets, his head bowed and with his bare feet grubbing into the grass underneath him.

"The reason I trained them as my successors..." his voice sounded muffled, as if he was talking with his jaws clenched, "was simply because I knew... that I had personally lost the battle already."

Light's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? How could you possibly have lost the case?" He regarded the raven haired male's white clad back, and noticed how he could see the bulks of L's spine through the thin fabric of his sweater. How could L possibly be so scrawny, he asked himself mentally for what had to be the upnteenth time.

With a faint sigh, the detective turned to face him, and when Light saw the sad, almost pained look in his eyes, he stepped several feet back.

"Because I knew..." the insomniac said in a strangely hoarse voice, "that I had gotten emotionally attatched to the case."

Light couldn't find a fitting reply to this, so he fell silent, stubborny refusing to look L in the eyes."Damn him!"

Biting his tongue in annoyance, he let his eyes roam over the figure standing before him. The familiar, yet utterly loathed figure.

L.

Why was it always L?

Even after the detective died and Light was still alive, he had haunted him. Both while he was wide awake and in his dreams. He'd seen those eyes everywhere he went, heard the shuffling sound of his feet against the carpet, his voice... L's voice. He had seen ghosts in broad daylight. Even the smell of L seemed to linger after his death. Black coffee, chocolate, fabric softener and... something undefinable that reminded him of a dusty rag for some reason. In a sudden state of horror, Light realized that he actually knew exactly how the insomniac smelled!"Oh Christ"

, he thought with an annoyed huff. "

The bastard chained himself to me for months! No wonder I know how he fucking smells!"

With his newfound understanding, he quickly discarded any other thought he might have had upon that topic and started focusing on the jerk in question.

L wasn't looking at him anymore, and the anger had completely vanished from his features. His face was once again expressionless and only the pink tinge in his cheeks spoke of his recent outburst. His gaze was directed at Ryuk now and it was evident that he was going to say something.

"So..." He said slowly.

"One of the orphans we spoke of earlier... Nate River." Light almost jumped at the mentioning of Near. But not solely out of his relations to the boy, but because of the way L said it.

For the first time since he arrived here and met him, the detective's voice held something akin to fear. Looking over at his crooked figure, Light noted that he was hesitating, nibbling nervously on his lower lip while his finger danced across his chin.

"Yes?" Ryuk must have seen it too, cause as he eyed the former head of the Kira-investigation, his grin widened undeniably and there was a somewhat morbid gleam in the depths of his golden eyes.

L swallowed before letting his arm fall to his side, and lifted his head to look at the Shinigami before him. The moment his eyes met Ryuk's, they hardened and the familiar coat of mist came to cover them once again, making his face a blank, unreadable mask.

Light had seen him do this many times before, mostly when he was pressured by something or someone, or -as the case was now- when he didn't feel a hundred percent comfortable with a situation.

He suddenly realized that it had to be hard for the detective to ask questions about Nea-Nate River.

The .

He mentally he burn in Hell.

L wasn't affected by his malicious thoughts. He was still regarding Ryuk with those shaded eyes of his. "Did Near continue as L after Yagami-kun passed away?" The last words were uttered in a venomous tone, and coal colored eyes darted towards Light for a split second before they drifted back to Ryuk.

The Death God didn't answer right away. Instead he regarded him for some time before he raised a bony finger and pointed towards the darkened sky.

"It's getting late."

The Investigator didn't even blink. "Yes."

"Which means," the Shinigami drawled on, "it's time for me to go."

"Go where?!" Light wasn't able to hold back the question. Before he could stop himself, the words had left his mouth and he had taken a step closer to Ryuk.

"Light, Light, Light... Where I am going is none of your business."

He snorted mockingly, "and haven't your mother explained to you the concept of not interrupting others?"

The comment merely earned him a scowl, but Ryuk seemed to be satisfied with the reaction, because he let an amused chuckle escape him before turning his attention to L once more.

"Your successor still uses the alias you left him from time to time." He gave a bored yawn, "to fight crime and whatnot. Although..." another chuckle, "today's criminals aren't any fun at all..."

"And by "fun", I suppose you mean complex?"

"Well," the Shinigami shrugged, "at least Light here had a plan, an idea. A vision if you want. And he put quite a lot at risk to get where he wanted."

L's eyes immediately hardened. "You mean quite the amount of human lives?"

"Sure. But nonetheless, he wasn't playing safe all the time. That is what makes a battle funny. When the people engaged in it aren't chained by rule-"

"-Chains!" Light suddenly remembered. "Ryuk! Do you know anything about these invisible chains?"

For a split second, the Death God actually seemed confused. Lowering himself in the air a little, he tilted his head and shot it forward. "Chains?"

"Yes!" The japanese male exclaimed in a rush, afraid the Shinigami was gonna cut him off again. "For some reason, I am attatched to this bastard," he made a quick nod towards L, who was biting his nails again and didn't seem the least interested, "with invisible handcuffs!"

Ryuk's eyebrows raised slowly, as if he was about to make some sarcastic remark. Instead he just kept them there, his expression frozen, making him look like some kind of grotesque porcelain doll.

"Invisible handcuffs, eh?"

Suddenly the blank look his his eyes got replaced with one of understanding. "Oh."

Light's eye twitched. "What do you mean with 'Oh'?! Stop playing, idiot!" He was sick and tired of the Shinigami's games, and he couldn't care less if he was being rude. Ryuk wasn't his companion anyway- And, he didn't have feelings, so Light calling him names wouldn't hurt him one single bit.

"Tell me! Why are we cuffed together? And," he added in a scolding voide, "if this is the afterlife, why are we the only ones here?!"

He had expected some kind of enigmatic reply, but instead, he was rewarded with the sound of wings billowing in the air. In a matter of seconds, and before neither he or L could do as much as lift a finger, Ryuk was several feet above them."What the..?!"

"Ryuk!" He called out, craning his neck to look at the Death God's wrenched, lanky silhouette. "Ryuk, where are you going?! You can't leave!" His voice held a desperation very unlike him.

"What's with the chains?! And what is this place?!"

"Light," the Shinigami's voice was raw, and as he halted in the air for a few seconds Light could see through the gloom that he was no longer smiling. "Whatever this place is... it's not what it used to be." He started moving upwards again. "I have to take care of a few things. Now I know where to find you, so I'm sure we'll meet again."

With those words, he flapped his fur-like wings forcefully one last time, and dissappeared into the starry sky.

"Ryuk! Wait!"

No answer.

"RYUK!"

Only the mountains replied. And when they did, it was with the echo of his own voice.

* * *

__

"...And I suppose flames won't have an effect on it either?"

"Hyuk Hyuk. You're right. This Note is indestructable. You cannot destroy it. Why don't you use it? I thought you were the successor of that great Detective? He always said; "Justice Will Prevail." Here's your chance to make it happen."

"For a God of Death, a fundamental creature of the Universe, you are awfully caught up with the human definition of things." The young man, now five years older than when he last saw him, stated blankly. "You, whom are not tainted by our common belief and our emotions, shouldn't even offer me to use it. It's going against Nature. Me using it to rid the world of 'evil' would be nothing different from Kira using it."

He gave a nochalant shrug, as if he was talking about the weather. "Kira and myself may have different mindsets, but if I used this Note... It wouldn't be used objectively. By using it, I would force my own Justice on the world with a device which originally wasn't supposed to be in the hands of men, and as I am sure you know, Shinigami," his eyes met the Death God's,

"Justice as it was delivered by Nature has got nothing to do with Humans, or their emotions. And L, he failed, because of this. Justice is not made by Humans. So why should we bestow it upon one another?"

"You know... For a Human being to understand these things..." The Shinigami's normally leering eyes now held a fire that seemed to orinigin from somewhere deep inside him, "it is pretty rare."

The boy, now twirling a lock of his perfectly colorless hair just continued to regard him from his spot on the floor. "It's not about understanding," he said simply, "it's about the ability to leave one's emotions out."

Suddenly, he made a move to stand, and the Death God found himself moving back a little, to keep the pace between them. For some reason he couldn't grasp fully, he was more than a little intimidated by the kid. It was just something about those big, dead eyes of his that the Shinigami couldn't figure out. Something slightly inhuman.

It was a weird really.

A human being, a teenager none the less was able to cause a God of Death, a ruthless, untouchable killer, to shy away on instinct. Briefly, he wondered how Rem would have reacted to his presence. She had always been a lot more aware of a person's energy than he was. She had often exclaimed that Kira made her angry or annoyed, and it was no secret that she had cared deeply for another. He, himself usually never cared about humans, but this one... he was different.

Once he was standing up, The Shinigami noticed that he was about Light's height now, and he grinned inwardly when he also reckognized L's way of hunching his back.

Different, maybe. But not completely original.

* * *

To be continued...

A/N: Oh yeah. I know I mention how I hate Near. I still do. (Just for the record. IF you should wonder.)


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** Not mine.. Whatever.

**Warnings:** In this chapter... ? Well all over it is slash. SHALL BE SLASH! (But no lovey-dovey-doo-goodieness.)

**A/N:** Yay! I updated! I had a little struggle with this, and I have no beta- so please tell me if it sucks. Anyways! Enjoy!

Ja-Ne!

* * *

**Game Over**

_Chapter Ten_

"History"

_-_

_"You must be either; a total idiot - which I am sure you already know you are-, or you must really have the guts..."_

_"Hyuk, Hyuk. And why is that?"_

_"To come back here... After you were banned. What you did was..."_

_"It was...?"_

_"You did the unspeakable. Indending to or not, you caused the Lost Land to-"_

_"Yadda, yadda. I know. I went there, and saw it with my own... eye."_

_"You went there?"_

_"Yes."_

_"That's impossible! Humans are the only beings allowed in-"_

_"-Unless they are carrying a Note. That naturally brings the Death God."_

_"... The Note was left in the Human Realm."_

_"So they say."_

_"Stop messing around! You're only digging your own grave by doing so! I demand an answer!"_

_"Of course. Hyuk, hyuk. Your words are my law."_

_"That's enough. Tell me what happened to the Note?"_

_"It's in the Human World. Just like you said."_

_"Then what are you talking about? How can you possibly say you went to-"_

_"-Because I did."_

_"Then the Note clearly isn't where you said it was! Are you going to try and trick me again? You're a fool Ryuuku."_

_"Hyuk, hyuk. So they say. I'm not lying though. Wasn't doing so before either. The Note is on Earth."_

_"Then why are you allowed in?!"_

_"What do I gain from telling you?"_

_"Enough!"_

_"Clearly your ban is ineffective, since I am here. Nothing happened when I passed through the portal, just like I knew it wouldn't. Besides, the laws of Shinigami haven't been broken, so your threats are misplaced and will have no effect. So, I ask you, what is there for me to gain?"_

_"... Fine, Ryuuku. What is there for you to gain?"_

_"Hyuk, hyuk. I knew you'd come around eventually._

_"Hn."_

_"Tell me, King... Do you know apples?"_

* * *

_Ryuk_

_"Ryuk!"_

_"RYUK!"_

"-kun."

_What?_

"Yagami-kun..." His lashes fluttered in annoyance when the sound of someone saying his name invaded his head and broke the almost entranced state he was in. He could still hear the echo of his desperate screams for the traitorous Death God, the sound rolling like clouds of thunder through the many hidden chambers and corridors of his mind. However, something else was knocking on his doors now. Something he was more than reculant to let in.

"Yagami-kun."

He squinted faintly, stubbornly refusing to pay attention.

"Yagami-kun, it's getting late!" L's voice seemed to come from someplace distant, although it in reality came from just beside him.

Allright, he couldn't ignore the other male anymore. No matter how much he absolutely loathed to admit it, L was here, and he was too. Ryuk was gone, and he wouldn't come back remotely soon. At least not tonight. Besides, L was right. Darkness had fallen rather quickly, and the only current lightsource was the faint, cold shine provided by the stars.

Stars!

Light tilted his head back so fast he was suprised he didn't get a whiplash.

There!

His jaw almost dropped open when he saw not only stars, but _familiar _stars! Pictures in the sky that he knew! Star-maps he had seen a hundred of times before! Back home... The sky looked exactly like it did back home!

He and Sayu had often sat in his windowsill together as kids and looked at the stars before bedtime. Ever since she was a mere toddler, he had dragged her into his room in the evenings, placed infront of the window and told her about the sky. Then, as they had gotten older, they both had learned to appreciate these moments, and even though Light reached his teenage years, their tradition hadn't stopped. Sometimes, Sayu would knock on his door at night, asking him if he was finished with his homework, so he could tell her about a recent happening out there in space. More than half of the times, he had felt way too tired to accept visitors, but not once had he turned her down. Somehow, he couldn't tell her it wasn't a good time.

It wasn't only the stars that interested her. He had told her all about meteorshowers, eclipses, northern lights and other solar systems. They had discussed the possibilites of aliens, flying saucers and black holes leading to other dimensions, and more than once a heated discussion ensued, because she refused to believe his always logical answers. They had been sitting there, back to back in the windowsill, pointing, laughing, talking loudly in discussion. Loud enough for Soichiro and Saichiko to shake their heads in unison and laugh silently downstairs.

He managed to mentally rattle himself out of the memory. This was a lot more important that dreaming away.

"L!" He all but shouted, "have you seen-"

"-The stars?" The detective cut him off, obviously relieved that Light wasn't ignoring him anymore. "Yes. I saw it too, Yagami-kun." There was a strange awareness evident in the dark-eyed man's voice. "I noticed when they first started to appear. Venus is almost at the exact same spot as it was back in Japan."

_Excuse me?_

Light couldn't believe what he had just heard. "And you didn't tell me?!"

He turned to look at the detective, whom was now biting his thumb while gazing up at the endless, black space above them. "No." He answered simply, gnawing slowly on his finger, "you seemed to be occupied." He paused and then added, "with yelling at the Shinigami and all..."

"..."

His blazing scowl seemed to have no effect at all on L.

"What do you suppose it means?" The detective's tone was solemn, and Light could tell he wasn't trying to mock him by asking questions. He realized that even though L hadn't told him about this observation earlier, the raven haired man didn't know more than he did himself.

He gave a sigh. "I don't know, L."

It felt somewhat irritating not being able to come up with an immediate answer to this. Ever since he arrived at this place, he had been at a loss of knowledge and his intellegence didn't seem to matter at all. Coming here was like being reborn. He was without all the vital information he needed to make up his mind about where they were and what was happening. He only knew the basics. And they weren't even that much to brag about. He knew he was here, that he could feel, smell, think, hear and see. He knew he could get hurt- although not vital, and that he still harbored all the emotions he had back when he was alive.

He knew L was here, but, he didn't actually know if the detective, or anything else around him was real, or just fragments of his own imagination. He had never died before, nor did he know anyone that had ever died before, so he had little to no knowlegde about the brain's activity during the process of dying.

If the state of mind and body occuring just before death was anything like falling asleep, he could very well be dreaming right could, in fact, all be in his own head.

Glimpses of a made up afterlife that flashed through his fading mind moments before he slipped into eternal darkness. Dreams.

Hell, for all he knew, it was possible that he wasn't even dead! He could be in a coma somewhere at some hospital, and this could be nothing but a chain of twisted, horrorful nightmares.

He could even go as far as thinking- correction; hoping- that everyhing that had happened the past years were nothing but dreams (and now he confused himself again, because according to Ryuk -who could potentially also be a part of the nightmares-, ten years had passed already).

Suddenly he felt lost.

All these thoughts... they were tearing him apart from the inside. He had to stop debating with himself. He couldn't walk around making up theories about... yes about what exactly? He had no clue. Light Yagami, top student, genius, self proclained God of the New World had absolutely no clue.

"We should find a place to spend the night." L's hushed words interrupted his depressive thinking.

"What?" Light mentally smacked himself when he heard that his voice came out a lot less composed that he inteded it too. Damn! He couldn't start falling apart in front of L! Much less let it show! This was what all those silly thoughts led to. He needed to stop over-thinkin things in order to get his game straight. He was Light Yagami, damn it! He was Kira!

Kira never lost face like this.

"I said," L sent him a somewhat pointed look, as if he was trying to silently tell Light that he was acting weird -which he undeniably was, "that we need to find somewhere to camp."

"Oh..."

The detective sent him another weird glance. "I suggest we head back to the forest. It's getting rather cold and the trees will prevent us with shelter."

Light had nearly snapped "Oh yeah? And who's gonna shelter me from you?" But with the help from a great deal of goodwill he managed to keep his thoughts to himself.

"You're right." With practiced ease, he changed his tone to one of composure. "Let's go."

-

During their search for shelter, while they were all but dragging their sore limbs through the tacky area, Light found himself thinking of of Misa and what the Ryuk had told them.

He just couldn't believe Misa was dead. Her! Out of all the people... He couldn't even wrap his mind around it.

Sure, more than once, he had wished her far, far away- dead even, but he had never really tried to picture it. He'd just created space between them, and told his human dog to give him some much needed peace. Of course, he'd done it with grace and fake affection just to make sure that she wouldn't actually leave him because the thought he didn't love her anymore, but she had left, and his methods hadn't seemed important as long as he had reached his goals.

True, he had been playing with her emotions, but not out of amusement or cruelty. He had done so because he _needed_ her. The world needed her! She had the eyes, and without her, killing L and his other opponents would be an almost impossible task. (Oh well, he thought with an arrogant head-toss, he surely would have figured it out sooner or later anyways, brilliant as he was.)

The bottom point was that Misa had been very useful, despite her abolity to drive him up the wall with frustration. He had to give it to her though, just that, the fact that she had been able to affect him and his normally balanced state of mind so severely was pretty amazing actually.

Light usually mentally ignored whoever he wasn't remotely interested in, and God forbid he was ever interested in Misa!

Still, the petite girl had been all but ignorable more than once during their relationship, and her bubbly, almost spastic behavior had been enough to make even the ever calm Light Yagami drop his ice-mask and have an anger fit. At that point no one but L had ever managed to do that. No one but L- and _her_.

No, he thought with a sigh, Misa Amane just wasn't the person to die. She was too happy, too loud, too energetic, too... alive.

And yet, now she wasn't. She was gone.

And it was, if he had to be completely honest with himself, his fault.

-

Later, Light couldn't recall how they had managed to create a fire, but he was pretty sure it was him, and not L who did it. Not only did his hands, dirty and somewhat splintered from the wood he must have rolled between them, witness of that, but he had been a boy scout after all. Back in Japan, until he reached the age of twelve.

Apart from his regular Boy-Scout activiteis, Soichiro had also used to take him camping at that age, as a father-son activity. They would spend a weekend or two each year on the forest, on the moutain or by a lake. They would fish and hunt while building rafts and little shelters, only the two of them.

They would sit around the fire at night, huddled together, and Soichiro would tell Light about his work, and about the importance of being a importance of doing the right thing.

He had listened with a burning heart, at those times, secretly wanting the same thing. His passion only grew with the years, and the more his father spoke, the more fuel was added to the fire that lived within him. Of course, even at that age, Ligh Yagami knew he was going to become something great. He _knew_ that some day he would use his intellect in fighting crimes, ridding the world of evil. He would become a servant of Justice. Just like his father.

Now, trapped in another wilderness, around another fire, those years seemed to lie within another lifetime- well technically they did- and he found it hard to believe almost that he, Light Yagami, Kira- had once ran around in the forest with other kids his age, all carefree and happy.

Before he knew anything about Death Notes, Shinigami or Task Forces.

He wasn't yet tainted by the blood in his hands and even his father hadn't expected of him anything that wasn't normal. Back then, he was nothing but a mere child, not bothered by the problems or sorrows in the world.

He had been free.

A loud snap caused by a piece of burning wood caused him to snap out of the almost entranced state he was in and he realized that he wasn't shuddering from the cold anymore.

The warmth from the crackling fire was slowly but surely settling in hos body, the raw, semi-wet clothes that had previously clung to his skin were starting to dry and the smell of burning wood and hot stones was filling his nostrils.

His limbs, still sore from their violent descent from the stony, not to mention hostile, mountain hill- were aching dully as a response to the heat, but it seemed that all his major wounds and injuries had healed. Just like he had assumed earlier this place held some kind of magic, allowing broken bones and wounded flesh to grow back together both extremely fast, _and_ rightfully.

Briefly, he remembered the fact that L hadn't been limping at all on their way back to the twisted, jungle-like forest, something which indicated that even his severely harmed leg was mended too. As expected, the though brough him little to no happiness.

Flicking some of his hair out of his eyes, he let his gaze travel to L, whom was currently sitting on a flat stone on the opposite side of the fire. The insomniac sat in his usual hunched position, with his jeans clad knees drawn up under his chin, staring into the flames with a thoughtful expression on his face.

Small particles of glowing ash swiveled up towards the velvet sky where they gradually went out with a faint poof or dissappeared silently. Through the gloom, they looked like crispy, surreal snowflakes- and at the sight of them, Light suddenly wondered if it would ever snow in this place. It appeared to have the same type of climate as back home, but for some reason, he had a hard time picturing the overgrown forest covered in snow.

He noticed that few of the little flakes had had already landed in L's dark hair, and for a split second, Light felt a strange urge to walk over there and brush them away.

With a sudden, impulsive grin, he tried to picture how L would react if he actually went and did such a thing. Knowing the insomniac detective, Light imagined he would probably fall straight of the stone he was sitting on in sheer suprise. L's mind was calculating and predicting, and if something completely unforseen happened, he was flipped of the board quite easily.

He barely just managed to hold back the amused chuckle that had threatened to spill from his lips at the inner vision. He had seen L fall out of his chair in shock once, and therefore it wasn't an impossible task to picture it again.

Light felt his grin widen even more, and before he could stop himself, he had already openened his mouth and uttered the first syllables.

"Ryuuzaki?"

L seemed suprised at the light tone. "Yes?"

Deep, black eyes, reflecting the orange, dancing flames glimmered at him underneath raven bangs. Suddenly Light noticed that L looked much... healthier now than he did when they were back in Japan. His skin, although still pale, appeared somewhat more tan, as if the day outside in the rain had rattled his system, causing his bloodstream to speed up and grant his cheeks some color. The bags underneath his eyes weren't such a contrast to his white features anymore, and even his lips seemed to be rosier.

At closer thought, Light would even say he looked normal.

"Why did you decide to become a detective?"

The question was taken right out of the air, and in reality, Light had absolutely no idea of what had possessed him to ask L such a thing. He hadn't intended to ask anything at all really, and definitely not something like that. He didn't want to know. Nothing about the insomniac was important to him. In fact, he wasn't even remotely interested in the man. Not his past, not his thoughts or his-

"-I didn't chose it for myself, Yagami-kun."

Wait, what?

All of a sudden, Light disgarged all his previous thoughts. Who was he even trying to kid? If anyone peeked his interest at all, it was L, and this, he had not expected. Did he just say he didn't chose to become a detective himself?

Yes, he did!

Light eyed him sharply. "What do you mean?"

L simply shrugged. "When I came to Whammy's House with Watari, I didn't know what I wanted. I had merely turned five, and both my parents were dead."

_Dead? _

_L's parents were dead? _

Light felt his gaze narrow.

_So that's why he was brought to an opphanage in the first place._

This was in fact a bit dissappointing, because in the back of his mind he had somehow always believed that the reason for this was because L's biological parents had been so creeped out by what a freak of nature their son was that they had willingly given him away. Well, he hadn't really believes this, but the thought had brought him a lot of satisfaction and amusement.

"I had already spent half my life in oprhanages, but I always proved to be too much for them every time, so they kept sending me away- telling me that the next place.... That's where I was going to find a new home."

_See? _Light mentally gave himself a rewarding pat on the shoulder.

_You were right, he was too much of a weirdo to be adopted by anyone._

A small sigh left the insomniac's lips. "No one ever claimed to want me. They would always pick the happiest, chubbiest or most invading child and exclaim loudly that they had finally found their long-awaited son or daughter."

The fire made another loud pop.

"The last place I was sent to were about to give me up, telling me frequently that I was too much of a challenge for them. It was in the middle of the winter..." His expression changed to one of rememberance. "I had just turned five and I didn't want to travel again. I was sick and tired of switching places to live, and even thought I didn't like the orphanage that hosted me that time, I felt very reculant about leaving, because I knew that wherever I went it would be the same old sotry repeating itself."

Light could only nod slowly. "Yeah."

"Well," something new ascended in the detective's eyes. Something he could only define as a small flicker of warmth, "that's when I met Quillsh."

_Oh... So that's why he looked so content all of a sudden. _

_Quillsh Whammy._

_Watari._

"One morning he was simply standing in my bedroom, telling me that he was going to take me with him. He said we were going to a place where there were others like myself and where I would fit in."

He paused, his gaze gaining a faint hint of sadness. Light actually had the shame to cringe a little inwardly. No matter how much he despised L, he knew how it must have felt to lose someone who was practically the only father figure in one's life.

He regarded the other male in silence, somewhat afraid that L would pick up on those thoughts and accuse Light for murder again instead of continuing with the story. Something, which he, to his enormous suprise felt would be worse than the actual accusation.

To his relief, L hopped off whatever train of thought he was on.

"Watari claimed that he saw something special within me from the start."

Light almost snorted at this. No shit? When it came to L, a slow five year old would see the rareness.

"Like you said yourself, Whammy's House was a place for gifted children, and most of them were trained from the early years to do great things, all depending in what kind of intellect they had. Some would make splendid canditats for government positions, while others were more of the scientist type. There were children who functioned well socially, and those who... didn't."

He trailed off, a small frown evident on his features, something which almost made Light crack a grin.

"And I suppose you were in that cathegory?"

At this, L actually did smile. "Yeah..." He twirled some of his hair around a bony finger, for a split second reminding Light of Near, (of course, he strangled the mental image before his mind gave fully birth to it) and looked up at the star-dotted sky.

"I didn't get along wih them. The other children, I mean. Not because they were being mean or hostile towards me or anything," He explained in a low, emotionless tone, "they were all very polite actually. Whammy's didn't tolerate rude or obscure behavior." The shadow of a smile slid accross his features, "well, until Mello came along, that is..."

Light wathced as the detective's expression changed rapidly once more, the amusement he must have felt at the memory soon fading into something that was only portayed as a small flicker of pain in his eyes. Probably at the thought of the blonde's death. Again, the young japanese man felt something akin to a sting in his belly. A small sign of... regret?

No, responsibility maybe. Because he knew he was the one to blame for L's loss.

He looked away. For some reason it was impossible to meet that onyx gaze just at that moment. First the reminder of Watari, and now Mello.

Even thought Ligh hadn't really liked Watari and absolutely detested the chocolate addict, he knew wery well that L begged to differ, and the look in the raven haired man's face...

He was almost suprised when he heard L speak up again.

"I mostly kept to myself. At times I would spend several days, maybe weeks in my room, not talking to anybody but Quillsh. Some days I wouldn't even eat."

He bit his thumb. "I could go without eating and drinking until I passed out, and only when I was unconsious would they feed me through intravenous treatment. Then, Quillsh found out that I responded nicely to sweets, and he tried feeding me that instead of the regular meals they served."

Light raised a delicate eyebrow. "You didn't eat... at all?"

He was rewarded with a blank look. "No."

"Okay..." He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, "go on."

"Roger, the manager of the Orphanage, called Quillsh a fool, and tried to call me into his office a few times, probably to try and figure me out by himself and put a stop to my so called "nonsense", but I merely stated I didn't want to go. They all tried to motivate me to eat other things than candy as well, but after some time they gave up and stated that as long as I at least ate something..." He trailed off, once again looking somewhat down.

Light had been sitting completely still in disbelief, not moving as much as a muscle.

Why would L tell him all this? Why on earth (or wherever they were) would he share these things with him, of all people? This was his childhood. His memories! L never told anyone anything about himself, and especially not anything concering his past. He was a walking mystery. A person without history, without a tail of events following him! Ever since the beginning of their relationship, L's life had been hidden behind a brick wall, not showing through the tiniest hole. The texture of that wall was absolutely complete, and there was no way around or over it.

No traces were left behind him on his path, and it was impossible to make out where he was heading. He was nothing but an unmoving, blank slate. He had no identity, no persona. He was just a mask. A character in a play. An actor. The real person behind the alias L had never been visible.

Until now...

_No! _

That was impossible!

Light felt himself biting his tongue to the point where he was sure he was going to bleed.

L didn't have a past! Couldn't have one! At least, Light couldn't know anything about it! That would make the insomniac human! It would make him something less...

Yeah, what exactly?

He realized he was afraid of the answer.

"Oh well!" L exclaimed suddenly, making Light jump roughly and tumble out of his thoughts. "That's not important. You were asking about why I became a detective, didn't you?"

The brown haired man scoffed. L knew very well that he had been asking about that.

_Tche. Back to the act._

_He is just going to pretend that he never told me anything, isn't he? What game is he playing now? _

"Like I stated earlier, Quillsh or Watari as you know him as, tried to make me interact with the other children, but I didn't feel like it. So instead, he let me observe them from my window. When he came and talked to me about my observations before bedtime, he noticed that I frequently used the words "right" and "wrong" to define their actions and behavior towards one another."

His gaze met Light's.

"And that's when he decided to start lecturing me in order to make me become a detective. Because of my sense of-"

"-Justice." The word had left Light's mought before he even comprehended he was the one talking.

* * *

_"Do you believe me?"_

_The young male gave him an almost questioning look. Of course it was nothing but a shadow, due to his lack of expressions. His eyes still didin't portray whatever he was feeling inside. If he had feelings at all that was._

_"Believe you? I am listening to you, aren't I? It doesn't matter if I believe you or not." He shrugged. "Even if I thought there were reasons to believe you, you haven't offered me proof," the ghost of a smirk played in the crook of his mouth, "so your question isn't really valid."_

_The Death God blinked dumbly at him. "What?"_

_The boy didn't reply, so they regarded eachother silently for a couple of seconds, before the Shinigami tilted his head. "Are you saying that your body doesn't respond illogically to anything? That you need solid proof even to feel?" For a split second he actually sounded shocked._

_He realized the kid must have picked up on his state of mind, because when the boy opened his mouth to speak, his upper lip was slightly curled, as if he was about to smile. "Of course not."_

_This reply earned him another confused look. "Then what are you saying?"_

_The Human ignored his question._

_Instead of answering, he walked over to a small, wooden cupboard in the far corner of the room, opened it and slipped out a bowl of something the Death God reckognized the smell of even before he could get a glimpse of it._

_Apples._

_Red, fruity, delicious apples. Waiting only for him to eat them. Strutting their juices at him, like they were challenging him to take a bite._

_The Shinigami felt his eyes widen and twitch. "Are those for me?" His mouth started to water as the white haired boy closer the cupboard again, still holding the bowl of apples in his right hand._

_He eyed him intesely as he moved accross the floor, to sit down by his desk to calmly his chin on one of his propped up knees. The bowl was carefully placed on he table-plate before him, and with an almost feline grace, the white haired teenager reached for an apple, grabbed it, and held it out in front of him._

_"Shinigami..." He said slowly, distant, as if he wasn't really aware of the fact that he was saying his thoughts out loud- which of course he must have known, seeing as he had already adressed the Death God, who's mouth was now watering from the mere sight of his favorite dish._

_"Did you know apples were considered a source of eternal youth in northern mythology?"_

_"No-"_

_"-While they in Greece mythos exclaim that the inscriptions on a golden apple indirectly caused the Trojan war?"_

_The Shinigami, now even more intrigued than before simply shook his head. He didn't know what the kid wanted him to say so he decided to keep quiet and not interrupt him. Maybe his silence would eventually earn him an apple. So, instead of speaking, he watched simply watched as the kid let a slender, pale finger slide over the fruits flawless, ruby skin. Bones and blood... Red and white. The Death God licked his lips._

_"Christians define it to this date as the Forbidden Fruit..."_

_Misty, gray eyes lifted to meet surreal golden ones. And an almost suffocating silence settled as their gazes locked._

_"...growing on The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil."_

_He let the sentence linger in the air for a few seconds before speaking up again. "And..."_

_There was definitely something new in his voice now. Something the Reaper couldn't identify. Something that -had he been a human being- would have made the little hairs on his back stand straight._

_"...Shinigami loves apples, right?"_

-


End file.
